iTransformers
by emeralddusk
Summary: Warring robots bring their ageless war to Earth, and Carly, Sam, Spencer, and Freddie get caught in the crossfires.
1. Origin Story

iTransformers

Chapter One: Origin Story

_Before the beginning of recorded time, there existed a race known as Cybertronians. We were a peaceful people, who resided on the planet of Cybertron. For countless eons, we were free from war...Free from fear...Until an entity known as The Fallen betrayed our leader, Primus. His infinite lust for power divided our people: Some chose to join him and destroy all that got in their way. Others chose to stay loyal to Primus, and defend the innocent. The Fallen's army call themselves the Decepticons. Primus's soldiers are known as the Autobots. _

_ Our struggle reached its climax when a powerful device known as the AllSpark was discovered. The cube-shaped artifact possessed the power to give endless power, and even life to any being its holder chooses. After years of war, Cybertron was destroyed, Primus and The Fallen disappeared, our race was scattered throughout the cosmos, and the AllSpark was lost. I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots in Primus's absence. My mission is simple: to stop the Decepticons, led by my brother, Megatron from finding the AllSpark, and to return life to Cybertron..._

The year is 1932. In the darkest region of Antarctica, an expedition team lead by Daniel Shay was searching for minerals when an event occurred that no one had anticipated...

Shining in the sky was the Aurora Borealis, which painted the atmosphere dramatic shades of blue and red. Burning in the lungs of the men was the freezing breeze. Their faces were red and laced with frost, their fingers were growing numb, but no man was willing to give up on their quest. Flowing among the wind was a harsh cloud of snow, tearing at everything in its path. Time after time, the expedition crew drove their pick axes into the thick ice.

Suddenly, one of the men saw something in the air. "Captain Shay!" he called. Daniel looked at the sky, and saw a meteorite charging towards him. Blazing behind the piece of rock was a a trail of blue and white fire.

"Take cover!" the captain screamed, feeling terror well up in his heart. At his command, the men lept away from the piece of debris, crashing into the snow and ice.

With unfathomable power, the meteorite plowed into the ground, shattering countless feet of ice with a thunderous thud. Once the white cloud cleared, the men rose to their feet, eager to explore the impact. The sled dogs barked, sensing a dark presence. Steam from their breath was abundant throughout the area.

Ignoring the dogs, Daniel walked closer to the crater, his curiosity burning inside him. The snow and thinning ice crunched and hissed with every step. Gazing into the smoking pit, Captain Shay saw a deep tunnel hued a depressing blue color with jagged chunks of ice extruding from the area around the large rock. Meeting the bottom of the crater was a gigantic underground cave. Sharp ice stalactites hung from the cave roof, resembling the grotesque teeth of a shark awaiting to consume its prey.

With a loud crack, the ice gave way under Daniel's feet, and he plummeted underground. In a flash, the man awoke inches away from the smoking rock, his body throbbing, and a sharp pain in his shoulder. Touching the burning section of his skin and putting the hand in front of his face, the man saw a coat of dark blood covering his glove.

"Are you alright, sir?" one of the men called, hoping not to cause an avalanche in the cave.

"Fine, gentlemen," Daniel called back, his tone light. "But I seem to have a pretty severe cut." Looking in front of him, the captain saw a horrific image among the chunks of gray rock: a grizzly, dark gray metal arm with three curved claws for hands. Above the arm was a malicious mechanical face with red eyes resembling glass. Frozen on the being's face was a fearsome, rageful scowl. "...I believe we have made a discovery."

In the year 2010, the sun is setting over Seattle, Washington, painting what small part of the sky darkness hadn't engulfed a brilliant scarlet color. The thousands of lights from houses in the city shined through the shadows. A cool breeze blew through the area.

Sitting in a window sill inside her room, Carly typed in her blog, occasionally gazing into the horizon for inspiration. When Carly wasn't making webisodes for iCarly, she was actually a very deep, sensitive girl. For years, the concept of space had astounded her not in a literal sense, but in a mystical way that gave children something to dream about: the unending possibilities, the goal that could never be achieved.

Suddenly, the ringing of her cell phone snapped Carly out of her daze. "Hello," she answered.

"Hey, Carls, it's Sam," replied the blond teenager on the other end of the line. "Are you ready for the biography paper due tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Carly answered. "I'm doing it on my great grandfather, Daniel. Who are you writing about?"

"My mom's therapist," Sam answered. "Trust me. He has stories."

"Sounds great," Carly giggled. "Hey, I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing," Sam replied. "See yuh." The blond then hung up her phone, allowing Carly to resume her typing.

The next day, the sun was shining bright as Carly walked into her school. Meeting Freddie by the doorway, the brunette proceeded over to her locker, where Sam was waiting.

"Hey Sam," Carly greeted.

"Sup, Carls...Fredward," Sam replied, her tone losing its excitement once Freddie arrived.

"Puckett," Freddie replied, showing slight resentment. "Are you ready for the presentation today?"

"I know Carly is," Sam answered.

"What?" Freddie asked, showing irritation at the blond's cryptic answer.

"My dad told me if I get all A's on my report card, he'll buy me a car for my seventeenth birthday," Carly answered, excitement bursting from her throat. "All I need is to ace this project."

"Wow, that's great!" Freddie replied.

"I know," Carly added. "I almost passed out when he told me."

The bell then signalled for class to begin, and the three headed for their first hour social studies class. "Who would like to present their biography first?" asked Mr. Marx, a balding man in his upper forties who usually wore a light blue shirt and tie.

"I will," Carly volunteered," throwing her hand in the air. Walking to the front of the classroom, the brunette began to read her essay: "My great grandfather was the captain of an expedition team in Antarctica. For over ten years, he searched the Arctic tundra, making over fifty discoveries for his country."

"Yeah, before he went nuts," a male student commented, his voice mocking. The rest of the class (excluding Freddie and Sam) began to laugh.

"That's enough," Mr. Marx ordered, his voice angry and strict. "Carly, thank you for volunteering that information. I think, front what you had a chance to read, that you earned an A."

"Thank you, Mr. Marx," Carly replied. Despite her success, the teen couldn't shake the feeling that, much like too many of her other accomplishments, this came too easy. Nothing was really accomplished: her grandfather was still seen as a madman and nothing more, and she would recieve another gift she didn't truly earn. But still, a new car was nothing to sneaze at.


	2. The Car

iTransformers

Chapter Two: The Car

Among the infinite blackness of space, a giant sphere forged entirely of metal brought itself forward. The shining stars reflected off the entity's exterior, and hundreds of metal rods extruded from almost every inch of it. Rivaling the very planets in size, the being was surrounded by a malicious presence. Letting out a groan that echoed through the cosmos, the entity felt a great, burning hunger throughout its being. "I hunger," it said, a demonic aura surrounding every word.

"Ready to pick out your car, sis?" Spencer asked, briefly looking over at Carly, who was riding shotgun.

"I guess so," Carly replied, staring out the window at the landmarks passing by. Outside, the sky was still painted yellow from the morning's sunrise. "Hey, do you feel like...I really earned this?"

"Yeah, Carls," Spencer answered. "You've gotten straight A's for three years. You've made us all really proud. Trust me...you've earned it."

Her brother's comment providing only temporary solace, Carly tried to focus on other things. Soon, the young adult parked his car, and the two began to browse around the lot.

Painted red, blue, yellow, and every other color imaginable, the vehicles shined under the intense rays of the sun: Cars, pickup trucks: Chevrolets, Toyotas, Stingrays, smart cars, mustangs. Every symbol of wealth and pleasure lined the entire area. Out from a tan-colored building lined with long windows came a middle-aged Caucasian man, sporting a blue suit with thin, dark blue stripes going downward, and a dark red tie. "Hello there," he called.

Spencer put his hand in the air to greet the man. "Hey," the young man called.

The owner of the lot walked over to the brother and sister, and shook hands with Spencer. "Can I help y'all with somethin'?" he asked, his voice cordial.

"Um, yes," Spencer answered. "I'm getting my little sister her first car. Can you show us something in a moderate price range?"

"Sure thing," the man replied. "By the way, the name's Dustin."

"Dustin," Carly repeated, showing interest. "How long have you been a car salesman?"

"Oh, just about all my life," the man jokingly answered. "Sold my daddy my toy semi when I was five...Been in the business ever since."

The three chuckled, and proceeded over to a smaller section consisting of about twenty cars and five trucks. Every vehicle was well-kept, as reflective as a bathroom mirror, and sitting proudly on the hot asphalt. Among the cars, a yellow fifth-generation Chevrolet Camaro. Two thick, black stripes went down the hood and trunk or the car stuck out to Dustin. "Now, young lady," he said, feeling a deep feeling inside himself: the kind of feeling that is impossible to explain. The feeling that something's meant to be, and it can't be any other way. "I see you...sitting behind the wheel of this car...watching miles and miles pass you by in it...not knowing where you're going,...but knowing you're gonna get there with this car." Rubbing his hand down the smooth hood of the vehicle, the man concluded his statement: "Try it on for size."

Carly opened the door, sat at the driver's seat, let Dustin shut the door beside her, put her hands on the wheel, and breathed in. With that intake of oxygen, the girl felt a powerful feeling. "This feels...good," she exclaimed, trying to fathom every sensation: the grip on the leather wheel in front of her, the sun shining through the windshield, the cold metal surrounding her.

Illuminated by the sunlight was a unique design in the center of the steering wheel that resembled a face: a rectangle going down the center of the image, which cleaved into two points, resembling a Y., holes that produced the image of three-dimensional eyes, a forehead in the shape of a squared-off U. that pointed out to the sides and a three-dimensional triangle with a rounded top, which contained a triangular hole, connecting the halves. On the two sections of the forehead were two sets of rectangles pointed diagonally aimed to the eyes. A ways under the nose was a four-sided shape, resembling a chin, which, united with two lines coming straight down from the eyes, formed out an H. shape. Jotting diagonally out of the eyes were two more lines that ended in a curve (resembling a sideways seven on the left side, and a backwards and sideways seven on the right).

"Is this one okay, Spencer?" Carly asked her brother.

"How much for the Chevrolet?" the young man asked Dustin, detecting his sister's deep desire for the object she had worked so hard to earn.

The middle-aged man pulled out a clipboard with the exact dollar amount typed out on it, and showed it to Spencer. Letting out a quiet sigh, the brunette young man pulled out his wallet.

That night, the sky was pitch black over Seattle, and the moon was a sharp crescent shape.

"Spencer, I didn't know it was that expensive," Carly pleaded with her brother. "You told the guy a moderate price range."

"It's not a big deal, Carly," Spencer replied, throwing his jacket on a chair. "You earned it. Dad just didn't send us enough money."

"I'm not gonna let you cover the other three hundred," Carly argued. "I'll find a way to make money...If I can't, I'll just return it."

"Not gonna happen," Spencer shot back, growing angry. "I'll cover the money, you enjoy your gift. Hey, I need to meet Socko at the mall in about five minutes. You need anything?"

"No, thanks," Carly answered. "And...thanks."

"Any time," Spencer replied, a warm smile forming on his face. The young man then walked out the door into the apartment hallway.

Feeling tension form in her stomach and the back of her neck, Carly laid down on the couch, and threw a pillow over her face. _I don't believe this, _she thought to herself. _I am such a worthless little brat._ Letting out a sigh, the teen began to think of ways to make money. Suddenly, an idea crept into her mind...

Running into her room, Carly pulled her dresser drawer open, and began rifling through the items inside. Finally, she found what she was looking for: the case containing Daniel Shay's glasses. The very glasses he wore the day of his final mission in Antarctica. These would definitely make some money off eBay. The glasses had been a gift for her tenth birthday, and regret laced with a sense of wrong-doing burned in the back of the teen' mind. However, Carly was not about to let Spencer pay for her lapse of judgment.

Dialing in Sam's number on her cell phone, Carly steadied her breath, and held the BlackBerry to her ear. "Sam, can I use your eBay account?" she asked.

"Sure thing, Carls," Sam answered. "Why?"

"I...need some extra cash," Carly replied, trying to withhold as much as possible. "Can you just gimme your password?"

"Uh, sure," Sam replied. "It's SchneiderBabe24."

"Thanks, Sam," said Carly, jotting down the password on a clipboard. "I'll...put my item online tomorrow."

"Alright," Sam replied. "Bye."

"Bye," Carly said, hanging up her phone. Looking out the window, Carly walked over to the sill. Seeing her new car resting under the orange glow of the street light.

After righting a note for her brother, Carly Slipped outside, got into her car, put the keys in the ignition, and listened to the sweet roar of the engine. The headlights shined through the dark night. "Alright, baby," the teen whispered. "You're causing us a lot of trouble...let's see if you're worth it." For a rational person like Carly, doing something like sneaking out at night to drive away her stress was absolute insanity. Not to mention lying to her best friend, and selling a treasured family heirloom.

Shifting into "Drive" and checking for traffic behind and in front of her, Carly took off. Having had her license for almost a year, actually driving the car wasn't the heaviest thing on the girl's mind. It's not like being a poor little rich girl hadn't disappeared from Carly's mind.


	3. Attacker

iTransformers

Chapter Three: Attacker

"I can't believe you!" Spencer yelled, glaring down at his sister, who was seated on the couch. "You snuck out in the middle of the night to drive a car! What could possibly possess you to do something so stupid?"

"I don't know," Carly replied, looking down at the floor, her voice laced with regret.

"You could have told me you were going out," Spencer continued. "I would've been fine with it...I though we were close enough to talk to each other. I have custody over you...I'm responsible for you...If you had gotten hurt..."

"I'm sorry!" Carly yelled, tears forming in her eyes. "I was upset. I didn't know what to do."

"So you went out and drove without telling me?" Spencer replied, his anger increasing. "The worst thing you could do when you're upset is dive! Especially at night!...Would you have even told me if I didn't come home to an empty house last night?"

"I don't know," Carly snarled. The teen dropped her head, letting her hair block her face. Tears began to fall from the girl's eyes, and her voice began trembling. "I don't know."

His sister's sorrow cutting through his anger and disappointment, Spencer knelt on the floor, and wrapped his arms Carly. "It's okay," he said, letting out a sigh. "...Just...don't do it again, okay?"

"Okay," Carly replied, her voice muffled in Spencer's shoulder. "I'm really sorry."

Later that day, the sun was covered with a thick layer of gray clouds. A gentle mist poured onto the ground, and the air was bone-chillingly cool. Carly sat on her bed, typing on her computer: posting a picture of Daniel's glasses and a description of their value on Sam's eBay page. "Please do well," she whispered to herself.

That night, an army base located near Iraq was prepared for to return twenty soldiers to their homes. A small party was held for those who were being discharged. Those who were only on leave had their minds focused on returning to their homes: Alan Witwicky, a thirty year-old soldier of ten years was thinking about his young brother, Mark, who was currently attending high school back in Denver. The two had kept in close contact, but nothing could take the place of looking at the boy's warm, loving face in person. Ever since Alan and Mark's father died, the older brother served as a father figure for the young boy. Leaving for the army was a tough choice to make, but Alan knew Mark and their mother, Catherine, would be alright without him.

Captain Samuel Baldwin, a fifty year-old soldier of twenty five years was looking forward to seeing his wife, Sarah again, leaving his good friend, Captain James Russo to take his place. Sarah had never been like the stereotypical "girl back home" for the soldier, but she was, at times, all that kept Samuel going. The greatest example of his devotion to his beloved wife was the time he was wounded in battle, suffering from a severely broken leg, heat frustration, and a gunshot to the right shoulder. Being left to die in the desert, Samuel considered closing his eyes, and letting death consume him, body and soul. However, Sarah always told him, "If you give up on yourself, you're giving up on me...Stay on your feet, soldier", and the man was not about to let her down now. After about two hours, an American helicopter arrived, and he was given the help he needed. Years later, Samuel was ready to adjust to normal life again.

"You ready to see your family again?" Ron Lennox asked Alan. Ron was twenty two, and had been in the army for roughly two years. Others often mocked the man for both his young age, and the lack of adventure he had experienced. Despite the mockery, Ron refused to give up his career in the armed forces. Tragically, the twenty two year-old had no family of his own to go home to: his mother, an abusive alcoholic, abandoned the family when Ron was four, leaving only him and his father, who passed away four years ago.

"You know it," Alan replied, his voice up-beat as usual. "It's been too long."

Following the party, the soldiers saw off their friends on their way to the helicopters that would take them home. The night's air was cold and crisp, and the light of the full moon shined down on the entire area. One of the four copters sitting on the landing patch began to spin its top propellers. Immediately, the soldiers boarded their rides home.

"Did we authorize that fourth copter?" Captain James asked another soldier.

Suddenly, a loud, mechanical noise began to emanate from the unmanned helicopter. Its exterior began to writhe, its metal parts grinding together and shooting sparks into the air. Finally, the vehicle formed a horrific mechanical being, clad in black armor. Dangling from the creature's back were the propeller blades, which now pointed downward, forming what looked like a fly's folded wings. Two black hellfire missiles extruded from behind the abomination's neck. Its feet were divided into three rounded, pointed claws, and its hands were composed of highly-textured palms and four clawed fingers. The red eyes in the center of the monster's bestial face glowed in the night as it threw its metal claws into the air and let out an electronically amplified roar.

"Everyone out of the helicopters!" James screamed, filled with terror. "Take cover!"

The monster snarled, and fired the missiles from its back into the copter that held Captain Baldwin and Alan Witwicky. Fire erupted from the vehicle, engulfing every soldier inside of it.

"No!" Ron screamed, watching his friend's flesh catch fire and burn, his body writhing, and hearing his agonized screams echoing through the night. This was not how a soldier was supposed to die: a soldier was supposed to die on the battlefield, having won their own personal victory. Their last words being "Tell my family I love them." Not like this; no closure, no glory. Only suffering.

The embers that were once Captain Baldwin flew into the air, then faded into nothingness. For a moment, time seemed to slow. Every man and woman fled for their lives, not knowing what this horror was that slaughtered their allies. Ron pulled out the handgun in his holder, and began to assault the beast.

His bullets not seeming to even phase the creature, Ron felt Captain James's arm tightly grab his shoulder. "Stand down, son," he ordered. The two then ran for cover, leaving the mechanical nightmare to ravage everything in its path.

Come the next morning, the sun rose above Seattle. The sky was painted a hopeful orange and red, shining around the tall buildings. Carly awoke, and pulled off her covers. Still weary and groggy, the girl stretched, and walked into her bathroom. After taking a shower, the teen returned to her bedroom, clad in her aqua-colored bathrobe, and looked out the window to see her car glistening in the early morning's sunlight.

"Hey, Carls" Sam called from outside the door. "Are you dressed?"

"No," Carly replied. "I'll be ready in a minute."

Once the teenager got dressed, she opened the door, and Sam came inside. "Hey," said the blond. "You're selling your great grandpa's glasses?"

"Yeah," answered Carly, her voice reflecting her regret. "I have to help Spencer pay for my car. I feel guilty."

"You know, you're the only one who could turn a free car into a death sentence," Sam replied. "Why can't you just accept the car and move on?"

"...I don't know," Carly answered, growing stressed out. "...I can't just let Spencer take the responsibility for this. Dad trusted me to use the money responsibly, and I go way over the limit."

"If Spencer didn't want to help pay, he wouldn't," Sam argued. "Do you really think selling these glasses are a good idea, anyway?"

Carly sat down on her bed, "I guess not," she replied. "...But what do I do about the rest of the money?"

"We'll figure something out," Sam answered, putting her arm on Carly's shoulder. "We always do."

The brunette smiled at her friend. "Thanks, Sam," she said, relieved. "...I'd better take those glasses off eBay before people start bidding."

That night, in the outskirts of town, a police officer watched the computer sitting on his dashboard: a saved image of the glasses glowed with digital light. "SchneiderBabe24..." said the officer, his voice gruff. "RatBat, find this human." The man pointed at a picture of Sam on her eBay page.

A small metallic rat entirely painted black nodded, and muttered something in a foreign language that translated to "Order recieved." The animal stealthfully scurried out of the car, snuck around the others standing by the police cars, then crawled behind a building. Its body writhing, the black rat transformed into a purple, metal vampire bat, and flew into the night, the image of Sam frozen in its artificial mind. A high-pitched screach sounded from the bat's mouth as it soared through the darkness.


	4. Guardian

iTransfomers

Chapter Four: Guardian

Spencer drove the yellow Chevrolet down the road, its headlights shining through the night. Riding shotgun was Carly, with Sam in the backseat.

_This is so less cool exciting than actually driving, _Carly thought. _I guess I should feel lucky: Spencer could've just grounded me. I can go a month without driving._

A gentle rain began to spray the car, blurring over the windshield. Turning on the windshield wipers, Spencer noticed something out of the corner of his eye. "Hey, what is that?" he asked. "...Is that a bat?"

"I don't see anything," Sam replied. "Hey, pull over here, I need to pick up something."

"Okay," Spencer said, pulling up by the sidewalk. "How long are you gonna be? Do you know?"

"Yeah, about ten minutes," Sam answered, getting out of the car. "Thanks."

Once the blond was out of the car, Spencer drove away, his windshield wipers continuously running. Sam then entered a bank, where she intended to make a small deposit. A purple bat flew by the building, and hung upside down, staring at the girl.

After roughly ten minutes, Sam walked outside, looking for Spencer, hoping to get to warmth soon. "Come on," she said to herself. "It's pouring out here." Seeing that the Chevrolet was no where in sight, Sam started to walk back into the bank, but heard a loud screeching, and turned around to see the bat clawing at her face. Letting out a quick scream, the girl fell backwards onto her back, and tried to crawl away from her attacker.

Not relenting, RatBat flew into the air, and lunged at Sam, its metal fangs pointed at her jugulars. Before the machine could strike, however, the teen threw her foot into its face, knocking it onto the ground. Its purple exterior writhing, the creature became a black rat, and quickly scurried over to Sam, and sunk its white fangs into her leg, piercing her down to the bone.

"Ah!" Sam hollered, her leg throbbing. The teen repeatedly kicked the beast's pointed face with her other foot. Finally, RatBat let go, only to transform into its bat form.

Hissing furiously, the malicious assassin flew at Sam, his fangs stained red with her blood. Letting out an angry grunt, the girl put her right fist into her left hand, and thrust it backhandedly into RatBat's face, sending it hard into the wall, and knocking off part of the armor on the right side of its face. Gazing at the gray exoskeleton, the teenager felt a new horror enter her body. Becoming heavier and heavier, the rain continued to soak Sam as she ran away, desperate to escape the vicious machine.

RatBat following without mercy, the girl charged until her legs couldn't carry her any further. Finding herself in a junkyard, Sam hid behind a totalled car, trying in vein to catch her breath. Losing the human's scent, the bat landed on a pile of silver cans, and scanned the area. Using an amplified form of echo-location, RatBat soon found Sam, and flew at her with all his might.

"Sam!" Carly screamed. The sound of the girl's voice temporarily disoriented the machine's scanning mode, causing it to crash into a pile of smashed television sets. Running through the rain, Carly knelt down next to her friend. "Sam, are you okay?"

"No," Sam answered, still breathing heavily. "This thing's trying to kill me. I don't know what it is, but we have to get out of here."

"Spencer's just outside of here," Carly replied. "I told him I'd find you. Where's the thing that's after you?"

A loud, hissing noise interrupted the two. Carly and Sam turned to the beast.

"Right there," Sam answered.

RatBat's wings tore through the air, preparing to subdue its opponents. Thinking quickly, Carly grabbed a rusted muffler, and swung it into the machine, knocking it on the ground.

"Let's go!" yelled the brunette, pulling on Sam's shoulder.

Her adrenaline depleted, Sam felt the throbbing pain return to her leg, and fell to the ground.

"What's wrong?" Carly yelled, terror licking her heart as she glanced at the recovering bat.

"My leg," Sam answered, her teeth tightly clenched. "I can't walk."

Looking back and forth between her suffering friend and RatBat, Carly began to panic, and then picked Sam up and ran out of the junkyard. Hissing furiously, the bat charged at the two. The brunette began to run up the hill leading out of the junkyard, but tripped and fell into the dirt.

"Carly!" Sam yelled.

Struggling to her feet, the teenager adjusted her grip on Sam, and sprinted up the hill, where Spencer was waiting in the Chevrolet, the driver's seat facing the junkyard. Flying above the two, RatBat screeched wildly, his fangs shining in the moon light.

Spencer threw the back door open. "Get in!" he yelled, clutching the steering wheel with his free hand. Carly lept into the backseat, setting Sam down on the seat to the right of her. Before the girl could close her door, Spencer took off. Carly grabbed the arm rest, and yanked the door shut.

"What was that thing?" Spencer yelled, looking at the two girls through the rear view window.

"No idea," Carly answered, buckling her seat belt. "But it bit Sam. She needs a doctor."

"Sure thing," Spencer replied, turning onto the empty road.

Police sirens began to sound, and red blue lights flashed through the night. Noticing this, Spencer pulled over. Sam continued clenching her bleeding leg, breathing heavily.

Barely slowing down, the police car rammed the Chevrolet. Carly, Sam, and Spencer were violently shoved to their left, Spencer's head smashing into the driver side window. Pulling back, the car prepared to collide with the Chevrolet once again.

Suddenly, the gear shift stick pulled into "Drive", and the yellow vehicle gunned forward. The three passengers let out a scared yelp as they were jolted forward.

"Oh, my gosh," Spencer repeated, watching the steering wheel turn by itself.

Still, the police vehicle would not relent. Its siren howling, the white car sped onward, its tires beginning to burn. The yellow Chevrolet increased its speed, then spun into a u-turn. After less than a second of stillness, the car accelerated, its wheels screeching. Passing the police car, Spencer gazed into its window, and saw no driver.

"What's going on?" Sam yelled, her heart pounding.

"The car's driving itself," Spencer called back, clenching the sides of his seat. "Just hold on!"

Speeding against traffic, the yellow car turned towards the junkyard. The police car continued to ride the Chevrolet, colliding with its rear fender several times. Finally, the Camaro reached the junkyard, swerved inward, and opened its doors, knocking the three humans onto the dirt ground.

"Ah," Spencer groaned, pulling himself up. "Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah," Carly and Sam answered. Sam grabbed her leg, trying to form a tourniquet.

The yellow Chevrolet continued to swerve until it faced the police car, which was speeding towards it. Carly stared in shock at the two vehicles. Suddenly, the white car began to writhe, grinding into the ground. Violently, the police car transformed into a robotic monster with jagged purple and gray armor. Standing nearly sixteen feet tall, the beast snarled, and charged at the Chevrolet, his razor-sharp fingers spinning in circles. Covering the area that would be wrists for a human were two tires, which began to rotate in a circular motion as well.

Spraying dirt behind it, the yellow car dashed forward, ramming its attacker in its knees, knocking it face-first into the mud. The Chevrolet quickly swerved around, its headlights shining on the beast's body. Letting out an irritated snarl, the assassin sprung to its feet, and prepared to charge again. Suddenly, the Chevrolet began to writhe, letting out a mechanical sound.

Sam and Spencer dropped their jaws. "What the..." Carly began to say.

Two fists formed, then pulled back into a fighting stance as the yellow car transformed into a heroic, humanoid robot. The full moon's light shining behind it, the robot resembled a hero from an Anime show: Two car doors with their windows down serving as shoulder pads, two other doors, windows up, behind its shoulders, looking like insectoid wings. Its silver legs thin, shining, and coated with complex, sharply textured yellow armor, which came up to the hips. The machine's abdomen was thin width wise, but looked solid and strong, and its chest flared outward, covered with yellow armor composed of the front bumpers of its car form. Atop the humanoid's dark silver head was a yellow piece of armor resembling a helmet reflected the light of the stars, two non-menacing horns (the right one-from the robot's personal perspective, slightly shaped like a reverse 7, the left one shaped somewhat like a normal 7) stuck out diagonally, their curves pointing away from the purple and silver monster.

"Autobot," snarled the beast, his voice gruff. "Barricade shall crush your skull!" Charging forward like an enraged bull, Barricade prepared to slaughter his opponent.

The humanoid robot ran at the assassin, his two-section legs digging into the dirt. Colliding, the two robots grappled, their hands ready to crush the other's shoulders. Letting out a mechanical grunt, the yellow robot pushed forward, its body shaking.

"Weak piece...of slag!" yelled Barricade, hate shaking in his voice. The malicious behemoth began to spin his claws, slashing his opponent's shoulder pads, tearing off the paint.

Falling onto his back, the yellow machine thrust its feet into Barricade's abdomen, shattering the headlights on the hood that covering its breasts, and knocking backwards. Rolling onto its stomach, the yellow robot pressed its hands into the ground, and pushed itself onto its feet.

"RatBat!" called Barricade. "Attack the humans!"

Letting out an amplified "heeyah!", the humanoid tackled the purple machine, knocking it flat on its back. Barricade howled in fury, and tried to raise its hands, only to have them grabbed by the yellow robot. The humanoid machine grunted, its body under great strain as it crushed Barricade's blade fingers.

"Aaaah!" the purple assassin yelled, watching its hands shatter.

"What are those things?" asked Spencer, bewildered.

"No idea," Carly replied. "Let's hope the yellow one's on our side."

Barricade thrust its weight to the side, rolling himself on his adversary down the hill and into the junkyard. The yellow robot fell off, landing hard on its back, and moaning in an electronic voice varying from higher to low in pitch.

RatBat hissed loudly, and flew at Sam, her image reflecting in its sinister eyes. Suddenly, the bat exploded, sending shards of black metal into the air. The yellow machine held its left hand, which was now a futuristic cannon, forward. The large barrel turned, reloading its plasma supply.

Sam's startled breath grew heavier. Although it seemed like an ally, there was no doubt the humanoid robot was deadly.

Turning back to Barricade, the yellow machine aimed its cannon at its attacker's face. The humans turned away, and heard the sound of the weapon firing, then metal being crushed. Barricade then fell backwards, landing with a loud _thud_. Raising and dropping its diaphragm and releasing a metallic sound that vaguely sounded like a human's breathing, the yellow robot returned its left hand back into a palm and fingers, then turned to the humans, putting its hands on its hips in an ultra-heroic pose.

Slowing rising to their feet (Sam doing so with assistance from Carly), the three humans gazed at their protector. "A-are you friendly?" Spencer called, trying to steady his voice.

"If he wanted to hurt us, I think he would've done it by now," Carly whispered, trying to keep one eye on the machine the entire time.

The yellow robot released a sound like radio frequencies, then replied, using the voice of Richard Cox (a voice actor best known for his role as Inyuasha on the Anime of the same name), "I am on your side."

Feeling a slight burst of confidence, Sam called out, "What are you?"

Pointing up at the stars above him, the robot changed its radio frequency, and answered, in the voice of a deep-voiced male. "I hail from..." The station changed to an English scientist's voice: "The distant cosmos." Switching to William Shatner's voice, the robot concluded, "Our mission is a peaceful one."

"D-do you talk through your radio?" Carly asked.

The humanoid knelt on the ground, and transformed into its car form. "...Yes," it said, using a voice altered by frequency waves. "Get in."

Looking at one another, the three walked forward, Spencer and Carly letting Sam dangle as she held their shoulders. The humans then boarded the Cheverlot, which then drove away.


	5. We Are Autobots

iTransformers

Chapter Five: We Are Autobots

Lennox watched as his friends' remains were carried away in coffins covered with American flags. The sky was black, and the air was chilling.

"Present arms!" yelled Captain Russo. The soldiers raised their guns for a 21 gun salute. "Fire!"

Unable to bear what was going on, Ron kept saluting and staring at the ground, his jaw dropped. Forced to relocate to another location, the army soon came to realize they had lost much.

Tearing through the air, the bullets soared, paying tribute to the deceased men and women slaughtered by the robotic life form.

"Ronald Lennox," said a man wearing black sunglasses once the salute was finished.

Ron turned to the man. "Yes, sir" he said.

"Will you be willing to present this flag to Alan's family once you return home?" asked the man.

"...Yes, sir," Ron answered, not in any way taking the responsibility lightly.

"Attention," called out a middle-aged man with short white hair. "You have all witnessed something extraordinary...Please...come with me." Sensing the soldier's rational skepticism, the man pulled out an I.D. badge. "...I'm with the government."

Meanwhile, Spencer, Carly, and Sam sat in the yellow Chevrolet, watching it take them out of town. The situation was fantastic. Like something from a sci-fi fanboy's dreams.

"Where do you think he's taking us?" Sam whispered to Carly, uneasiness filling her entire body.

"I don't know," Carly answered, her voice shaking as she fought to hold back tears.

Finally, the yellow car pulled off onto a grassy cliff overlooking the entire city: Shining with dark blue lights, the Space Needle stood above the proud metropolis. Whistling gently, a cool wind passed through the area. Stopping right next to a single tree, the Camaro opened its doors for its passengers.

Carly was the first to exit. After looking away from the others and wiping away her tears, the brunette went to the other side of the car to help Sam up. Spencer got out of the driver's side door, and assisted Carly and Sam. Once no occupants remained inside its cab, the Chevrolet transformed into its robot form, and gazed up at the stars.

"What's it doing?" Sam asked, keeping her voice at a whisper.

"Maybe he's homesick," Spencer replied, trying to be strong, even though he was terrified and confused.

Suddenly, a beam of blue light shot out of the yellow machine's chest, shooting through the atmosphere. Watching in bewilderment, the three humans felt their sense of mystery deepen.

Flying roughly a mile away from the humanoid was a Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor jet flew through the sky. Picking up the signal being sent into space, the pilot dialed in a message to his allies in a foreign language, translating to "Target located...Prepare for assault on my order." The jet then flew upward.

Piercing the Earth's atmosphere, the signal flew into outer space, its path straight. Around the ray of light, the stars shined brilliantly, and the sun burned furiously.

"Carly," said Sam, looking away from the ray of light. "...Why are you crying?"

"...This is just...too much to take in," Carly answered, trying to steady her breathing. "...Just this morning, I was worried about paying for my car...Now that car turns out to be some kind of...alien robot."

Soon, the signal ended, and the yellow humanoid turned to the humans. "Come with me," he said, using a recording of Michael Beihn from Terminator. The robot then transformed into his Chevrolet form.

"...We've come this far," Spencer said. "Should we go on?"

Carly and Sam looked at each other. Years from now, this night could be viewed as the start of a legend.

"Are you in?" Sam asked, her voice laced with both fear and ambition.

"...If you're in...I'm in," Carly answered.

The three humans then boarded the yellow Camaro, which then drove into town, its engine roaring, and its headlights shining bright through the darkness. Shining along the hood and windshield were the breath-taking lights of the city. Carly managed to calm herself, and take in the beauty and excitement around her.

As the car's wheels rapidly turned, several fiery streaks soared across the night's sky. Sam, Spencer, and Carly gazed up at them, their jaws dropped in astonishment. One meteor collided into a baseball field, causing all the electricity in the area to fail. Another fiery orb crashed into the road in front of a sports bar. Pulling into an alley in an abandoned section of town, the Chevrolet opened its doors, letting its passengers get out.

People gathered around the sports bar, astounded. "What the..." an overweight man clad in an Italian T-shirt and blue boxer shorts began to say.

Avoiding the eyes of the humans, a tall, gray robot built similar to the Chevrolet pulled down behind a nearby building, and began to scan the area.

Hearing a strange noise that awoke her from her sweet dreams, a young girl with long, red hair looked out her window.

Jumping down from a building standing in front of a car lot, a smaller machine viewed the surrounding area: The machine began to adapt its armor, wishing to remain unnoticed by the world.

As people rushed around the baseball field, which they believed was the subject of a terrorist bombing, a black hummer drove away, flashing its lights, and its sirens howling. Not one person noticed the vehicle's departure.

The three humans watched in amazement as the meteors crashed in different regions of the city, lighting up the night's sky.

The red-haired girl walked out of her house, carrying a brown teddy bear, her best friend, Winston. Gazing at her family pool, which was eminating thick clouds of steam, the girl saw a thin, femininely-built machine step out of the water, and walk away into the night.

"Excuse me," said the girl, innocently. "Are you the Tooth Fairy?"

Running outside in their pajamas and night robes, the girl's mother and father saw their daughter. "Sweetheart," called the dad. "Whatter you doing out here alone?...Holy cow, what happened to the pool?" The man and woman stared at their smoking, crater of a pool while their daughter looked to the horizon, searching for the mysterious being.

Hiding behind several tall trees, the female machine looked at the humans, not wishing for anyone to see her. Keeping her footsteps silent, the robot ran towards the destination her ally's beecan directed her to.

Sam, Carly, and Spencer watched as six black, stealth vehicles pulled into the alley. Among them was a large dump truck, a hummer, a motorcycle being driven by a thin Asian woman wearing a black leather jacket, a military truck with its windows shaded, and a small jeep. Suddenly, the woman on the motorcycle began to pixelate, then disappear, and the vehicles writhed, their exteriors altering.

Stretching their necks to see the machines, the humans dropped their jaws. The black dump truck morphed into a humanoid machine with its hood covering its chest: the headlights were pointed diagonally. Its bucket split into two, and covering the outer sides of the machine's back, leaving the center unprotected. Leaning towards Carly, the robot's black armor around its silver face, the silver mouth plate, two large ear guards covering most of the sides of his face, pointing outward behind its head, then pointing into the air (resembling 7's). The impressive being stood roughly 28 feet tall. "Are you Carly Ann Shay..." the robot began. "Descendant of Daniel Shay?"

"...Yes," Carly answered, timid and extremely nervous.

"Who...What are you?" Sam asked the machines.

"We are autonomous robot organisms from the planet Cybertron," the dump truck machine answered. "Our race has been divided into two factions...Autobots and Decepticons. We are the Autobots." Sam noticed the silver insignia on the robot's diaphragm: it varied from the one she saw on RatBat. "My name is Optimus Prime...second-in-command my team."

"H-how do you know who I am?" Carly asked, her voice trembling.

"We located Daniel's glasses online, which were posted under the name SchneiderBabe24," the hummer robot answered. "You, Samantha Puckett, showed less traits in common with him than your companion. You do the math."

"Wait, wait," Spencer replied. "Daniel Shay's glasses were on eBay?"

"...I'll explain later," Carly responded. "...W-why were you looking for his glasses?"

"And why is this yellow guy protecting us?" Sam added.

"He is Carly's guardian,...," Optimus answered. "Bumblebee."

The yellow robot straightened out his back, his majestic figure accentuated.

"As for the glasses...," the dump truck continued. Optimus then pressed on the right side of his facial armor, and began to project a holographic ray of light from his optic receptors at the humans: Their surroundings began to change, becoming a shining, dark blue crystalline world composed of blue land, and thousands of futuristic, fully mechanical buildings. "Our world was once a powerful empire. Just...true. We were ruled by a noble leader named Primus. For centuries, we lived in peace...Until a being named The Fallen began to envy Primus's power, and set out to conquer the universe for himself. Those who chose to follow him became known as the Decepticons..." The buildings began to explode. Fires roared from the crystal ground, and the skies grew black. "We engaged in a war that soon consumed our planet...Our people were scattered throughout the galaxy...and Megatron set out to retrieve a device that could give Fallen what he needed to wrap his fingers around all reality:...The AllSpark." The image of a tall, vicious humanoid robot with grotesquely jagged armor appeared on a cliff above the large city, holding a long blade. Floating in front of him, in a ray of light, was a large cube with ancient hieroglyphics carved into it.

Carly noticed the symbols on the cube were similar to those on the cheek section Optimus's facial armor, but remained silent.

"After the great war, the cube hurtled into Earth's atmosphere," Optimus continued. "Megatron went after it, but we followed him, and managed to shoot down his ship...Thanks to Bumblebee's infiltration."

"During the battle," the hummer explained. "His vocal processor was damaged by one of Megatron's henchmen. I have yet to repair it."

Bumblebee nodded.

"The Decepticon ship known as The Nemesis was hurtled off course, but Megatron crashed somewhere in the polar regions of your planet," the female robot using motorcycle armor continued.

"Yes," Optimus replied, his voice growing grave. "Then an event occurred that intertwined our fates...Your great grandfather found Megatron burried under the ice, and accidentally activated his navigation system...The direction to the AllSpark were implanted on his glasses. For years, we have searched for any trace of the cube or the glasses from our base, ship known as The Ark,...but found nothing."

"Until I put them on eBay," Carly concluded, her shame growing. "...The Decepticons must have found out about them, too."

"...Yes," Optimus replied, his voice grave and sympathetic. "But you mustn't blame yourself, Carly...This is our war, not yours. The Decepticons have been scouting the world in the form of Earth vehicles for decades...it was bound to happen." Optimus knelt on the ground, and put his face in front of Carly, though even his head dwarfed her several feet. "Carly...we must have the glasses...Are you still in possession of them?"

"Yes, I am," Carly answered. "Oh, uh, this is my brother, Spencer. You already know Sam, I guess."

"H-hi," Spencer nervously greeted the machines.

"Greetings," Optimus replied. "This is my weapons specialist and second-in-command, Ironhide." The dump truck robot held his hand out towards the military truck robot, who stood about 25 feet tall, had a bulkier build than Optimus, and had two large, ten-barrel cannons around his wrists.

"Do you feel lucky, punks?" asked Ironhide, who spoke with a slight Australian accent, deploying his cannons.

"Easy, Ironhide," Optimus replied.

"I was just kidding," Ironhide replied. "Just wanted to show off my cannons."

"My communication specialist, Arcee," Optimus held his hand out towards a roughly seven-foot tall robot with a feminine build.

"Greetings," the motorcycle replied. "Remember, looks can be deceiving." Arcee then deployed a cannon slightly larger than her arm. Unlike the other Autobots, the female did not have legs, but a single extension cleaving into two bars meeting at the center of a motorcycle wheel: a form of gender differentiation.

"Our medical specialist, Ratchet," Optimus continued, looking over at the hummer, who stood about 21 feet tall.

"A pleasure to explore other species," Ratchet said to the humans, his deep, distinguished voice giving him an heir of intelligence.

"And our youngest soldier, designation Jazz," Optimus concluded, turning to the jeep robot, who stood about ten feet tall, and had a single visor for his optic sensors.

"What's snappin', little bitches?" Jazz greeted, his voice extremely deep, and resembling that of an African American human. Unlike the others, Jazz spoke like a stereotypical "gangsta", and had little respect. "Pretty nice place hee."

"How'd he learn to talk like that?" asked Spencer, slightly offended.

"We have learned Earth's languages through the World Wide Web," Optimus answered. Suddenly, a small, gray robot, standing only about three feet tall lept out of the dump truck's chest, and landed in front of Carly.

"Whoa," Carly yelled, startled.

"This is my PowerLink ally, Leader-1," Optimus explained. "Leader of the Autobot Mini-Cons."

"N-nice to meet you," Carly greeted Leader-1, holding her hand out in friendship.

The Mini-Con looked down at the girl's hand, studying it. An electronic dialing sound emanated from the creature's body. After a moment of silence, Leader-1 repeated the gesture. Carly took his hand, and gently shook it up and down.

A small, orange bird robot flew out from behind Ratchet, and landed on Spencer's shoulder. The young man looked at the creature, growing nervous.

"This is Laserbeak," Ratchet introduced. "Our spy for certain assignments. His alternative form is what you humans would call a digital camera."

The bird flew into Spencer's hand, and morphed in a rectangular camera. "Nice," said Spencer, admiring the device.

"This is my ally, Firestar," Arcee said, pulling a small red orb out from the armor covering her diaphragm. The orb then transformed into a Mini-Con standing about three-foot-two with white designs that made its mostly-red paint look like hot rod flames.

"Firestar," Sam repeated as the female Mini-Con walked over towards her. "I think we're gonna be two of a kind." Firestar turned her head sideways, releasing the electric dialing sound.

"I think...we're gonna be...two of a kind," the Mini-Con repeated, using an amplified female voice.

"Wow," Sam exclaimed. "These things can talk?"

"Yes," answered a blue Mini-Con, jumping down from Ironhide's shoulder armor.

"This is Bluestreak," Ironhide introduced. "He's a PowerLink with Jazz and I." Bluestreak stood about three-foot-five, and was painted aqua blue with some patches of dark blue.

"Blue-Streak," the blue Mini-Con repeated, nodding his head up and down.

"These Cybertronians are great allies, and can enhance our weaponry," Optimus explained. "But the Decepticons view them as no more than mere slaves and weapons...I apologize, but there is little time...The Decepticons could find us at any moment."

"Alright," Spencer replied. "Uh, We'll pick up the glasses at our apartment, then bring 'em back here."

"There's no time for that," Jazz replied, growing irritated.

"It would be better if we just went with you," Arcee added. "Then we could begin our search from there."

"Uh, I think having six black vehicles parked in front of the complex might look a little suspicious," Sam replied. "Can you maybe change your car forms or something?"

Optimus turned around, and scanned the distant road. Locating a blue Peterbilt 379 semi-truck with a red hood laced with thin, blue hot rod flames, the dump truck altered his armor, becoming the semi within several seconds. Atop the front of the cab, a red insignia identical to that on Bumblebee's steering wheel was engraved. "Autobots..." Optimus called. "Transform and roll out."

Bumblebee opened his doors for Carly, Sam, and Spencer. The three boarded him while the Mini-Cons merged with their allies' armor (Bluestreak merging Jazz). Along the way to the human's apartment (the coordinates being given via radio signal so that each Autobot could take a different path to avoid attention), the robots located new vehicles, and scanned them: Arcee adapted into pink Ducati motorcycle, though her hologram pilot remained the same. Ironhide adapted his armor to black GMC Topkick C4500 pickup truck. Ratchet adapted his armor into a yellow Hummer H2 Search and Rescue model. After examining several choice cars that jived with his size and density, Jazz chose a silver Pontiac Solstice.

Finally, the team arrived at the apartment. Seeing they were out of sight, the Autobots transformed into their robot forms.

"What took you?" Sam jokingly asked.

"Traffic," Optimus replied.


	6. Standing as One

_I need you..._

_When I'm about to give myself what I deserve..._

_When the world turns its eyes away from me._

_I need your eyes..._

_When I feel like things are good enough for me..._

_When I can't see myself in the mirror anymore._

iTransformers

Chapter Six: Standing as One

"What are we doing here, Mister..." asked Captain Russo, growing impatient.

"My superior will explain everything in a few minutes," replied the middle-aged man, continuing to walk through the underground base.

The soldiers glanced at the dark, highly-mechanical layer they were going through. Originally serving as a bomb shelter during World War II, this base was the second location of this mysterious area of study. Following the 9-11 attacks, security was doubled, and every lab secretly relocated.

"Welcome, American soldiers," said an elderly man with short white hair around the side of his head, wearing a black suit and tie. "And welcome to Sector 7."

"Never heard of it," James replied. "Are you associated with our government?"

"Yes," answered the man. "But only on a need-to-know basis. President Obama was a tough decision...Trust me, sir...we're legitimate."

"Just what is Sector 7 about?" asked Lennox, unintentionally going out of line.

"Good question," replied the elderly man. "First things first...My name is Commander Mark Rosenburg...veteran of the Vietnam War."

"Rosenburg..." James responded. "But they said you were MIA, and presumed dead."

"What better cover?" Rosenburg replied. "...Please, continue on." The soldiers followed the elderly man into a room entirely consumed in shadow. Suddenly, the lights came on, revealing hundreds of rows of computers atop long, white desks. In the from of the room was an enormous platform, holding a giant machine with jagged armor, entirely frozen over with ice. From the ceiling, concentrated dosages of liquid nitrogen, sustaining temperatures far below subzero.

"What in blazes is that?" asked Captain Russo.

"This...is what paved the way for all of today's technology," answered Mark. "By reverse-engineering this being, the government was able to invent cars, trucks, advanced communication devices, advances in weaponry...Every technological advancement of the twentieth and twenty-first century."

"...Unbelievable," Lennox whispered, his jaw dropped.

"Stand back, son," instructed a soldier with a higher rank than Ronald. "You probably don't wanna get too close to somethin' like that."

"Unfortunately, we have not managed to duplicate an even more impressive ability this creature possesses," continued Rosenburg. "...He has an amazing healing factor...his robotic armor is self-replicating. The wounds he sustained when he crashed on our planet, according to our scientists, healed within several days."

"This sounds fantastic," James responded. "But...how is it that you're the only ones who know about all of it?"

"The government can be very secretive when they want to be," the elderly man answered. "How else can you explain my standing in front of you right now?" Walking forward, a grave feeling began to surround the man. "Throughout the twentieth century, these robotic organisms have lived among us. Hiding in the form of automobiles, airplanes, and even military machinery. Recently, the attacks have become more frequent...That is why we have come to you...They must be stopped."

"...Understood," replied Captain Russo. The man extended his hand, prepared to form an alliance. Mark took his hand, and shook it up and down. James felt the man's icy touch chill his entire body.

Back in Seattle, Carly, Sam, and Spencer rifled through every inch of the Shay's apartment. Outside, the Autobots were in their new vehicle forms, Bumblebee and Jazz in front of the building, and Optimus Prime, Ironhide, Ratchet, and Arcee circling the area.

"Where did you put them?" Spencer yelled, his tension exploding in his body.

"If I could remember, we wouldn't be doing this right now!" Carly replied, running up to her room.

After doing a thorough investigation of her room, Carly went back downstairs, depressed. "I can't find them," she said. "I've looked everywhere." The brunette dropped down on the couch, and lowered her head in shame.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Carly," called Freddie from the hallway. "Carly, are you there?"

"Uh, yeah," Carly nervously replied, springing to her feet. "But, uh, don't come in. I'm uh...naked."

"Good luck keeping him out with an excuse like that," Sam sarcastically whispered to her friend.

"W-what do you need?" Carly called again.

"Do you know what the math assignment is?" Freddie asked.

"Uh, I think it's one through forty on page three-fifty-two," Carly answered, her voice still sounding frazzled. "I'm sorry, I'm really busy right now."

"Uh...okay," Freddie replied, his voice unsuspecting. "I'll, uh...see you tomorrow."

The three then continued their search, turning over every object they could find. After about ten minutes, the living room was in ruins.

"Wait a minute!" Carly finally yelled. "I think I remember where it is." The teen ran back up to her room, and rifled through her drawers, only to find her assorted shirts and jeans. Falling to her knees, the teen felt a painful lump form in her throat. Hot tears welled up in her eyes, then poured down her cheeks. _I don't understand this, _she thought. _I've let everyone down...If I hadn't put those stupid glasses on eBay in the first place...If I hadn't been so obsessed with getting that car..._Suddenly, Carly remembered: she had brought the glasses with her while Spencer took her and Sam out earlier that night. Checking her pockets, the teenager felt new dread enter her body. "They're gone."

Slowly walking down the stairs, Carly kept her head down, letting her hair cover her eyes. "They're gone," she confessed. "I had them with me when we were riding inside Bumblebee,...and they're not in my pockets now."

"Maybe they fell out in the junkyard," Spencer replied, still optimistic. "You know, when Bee threw us out. I'll go out and look for 'em."

"No, I'll go," Carly responded. "It's my mess, I'll clean it up."

"You sure it's safe to go out?" Sam asked.

"I'll have Bumblebee with me," Carly replied. "We'll be fine." The brunette walked out the door, shutting it behind her without looking back.

"Something's wrong," Spencer said, staring at the door. Spencer wanted nothing more than to stop her, but too much relied on the glasses, and Carly wouldn't forgive herself unless she fixed this.

Sam nodded, growing deeply distressed. "I'll follow her," she said. "I'll take Jazz." The blond threw on her jacket, and walked out the door.

Being Carly's brother, Spencer knew it should be him going after her, but he knew Sam could make more of a difference than he could. _Please, Lord... _the young man prayed. _Let them be alright._

Later that night, Carly rode in the driver's seat in Bumblebee's cab. At first, the Autobots were reluctant to let her go, but they were growing desperate. Above all, they trusted Bumblebee to keep her safe.

Once Carly and her guardian had departed, Sam asked Optimus to allow her and Jazz to follow her in case another Decepticon attacked. Prime agreed, and had Bluestreak join them. Along the way, the Mini-Con scanned a blue muscle car, adapting his armor while in his orb form inside Jazz's hood.

Finally, Carly and Bumblebee arrived at the junkyard. "Thanks, Bee," Carly said, exiting the cab. "Stay in your car form unless a Decepticon attacks, okay?"

The yellow car released an electronic dialing sound. Carly slid down the hill, and began to go over the area where her and Sam were being attacked by RatBat, then the surrounding piles of garbage. "Bee, can you shine your headlights over here?" she asked. Once the Autobot turned on his high beams, the teen began digging through jagged tin cans and discarded electronics until her fingers bled. After finding nothing in the piles, the teen looked around the spot Bumblebee threw her out when he went to fight Barricade. There, the brunette dropped into the dirt, and began scanning the ground, Growing desperate, the girl began digging, running her raw fingers into the cold, worm-infested dirt.

Bumblebee began to feel sorrow inside his Spark, realizing how upset his ally was growing. If there was traces of Energon, locating the glasses would be easy. _Primus help me, _the Autobot thought to himself, activating his navigation systems. Bumblebee's optic sensors began to display everything in red. Thoroughly scanning the landscape, the yellow machine found nothing. Letting out an amplified moan, Bee turned sideways, viewing the grassy region above the junkyard.

Carly threw herself out of the mud, her face painted over with brown, tears welled up in her eyes, her fingers bleeding, and her spirit broken. Finally, the girl dropped onto the ground, letting her right hand support her. Suddenly, she felt something sharp in her palm. Looking down, Carly saw the glasses, halfway submerged in dirt. _Thank you, _Carly prayed, looking upward. The brunette picked up the glasses, which were still in near-mint condition. "Bee!" she called. "I found them!"

In the distance, a robotic organism with black armor and glowing red eyes monitored the two beings. The machine snarled, then sent the girl's coordinates to his allies. "Pursuing," declared the robot, his claws grinding into the rock he was hiding behind.


	7. New Ally

**Beyond Good...Beyond Evil...Beyond Your Wildest Imagination**

iTransformers

Chapter Seven: Growing Up

Sam road in Jazz's passenger seat, her mood worsening by the second. "Don't you think it'll look suspicious if people see a car driving itself?" she said, her voice laced with sass.

"Don't care," Jazz replied, sounding less than enthusiastic. "Don't like humans sitting in my driver's seat."

"Nice," Sam responded, sarcastically pointing out the possible double intendre.

"Tell me," Jazz said, ignoring Sam's comment. "Why is it so important for your friend to find the glasses herself?"

"She feels like it's her fault all this started," Sam answered, staring out the window, watching the landscape speed by. "Carly thinks she's had everything handed to her...wants to prove she's more than a poor little rich girl."

"...I don't understand," Jazz replied. "The Deceptidicks'll tear her apart if they find her. She's putting herself on the line to make a point?"

"Why the interest?" Sam responded, growing interested. "We're just humans."

"Yeah, but um stuck here," Jazz answered. "Might as well take in a lesson or two."

Sam chuckled under her breath. "I think Carls is proving it to herself," the girl said. "How would you handle something like that?"

"...Wouldn't let it bug me," Jazz answered. "Who gives a scrap over somethin' like that?"

"Can't explain it," Sam replied. "It's just something she needs to do."

Jazz continued driving, not muttering another word. All of his life, the young Autobot had only been concerned with defending his teammates, and standing up for what he knew was right. Sure, he felt like the others looked down on him for his age, but he never viewed himself differently because of it.

Meanwhile, Carly walked towards Bumblebee, who was still in his vehicle form. Suddenly, a snarling sound tore through the air, and black-armored Decepticon charged out from the shadows, its eyes flashing with murderous rage.

Seeing the assassin, the yellow Chevrolet closed its doors. "No following," he said, using the voice of Vin Disel from "The Iron Giant". Carly stood still as her guardian sped forward. Bumblebee's exterior writhed, and his robot form was revealed as he lept into the air, bearing his fists as he went into a jump-kick stance.

The Decepticon pulled itself backwards, letting the Autobot crash into the ground. Quickly, Bumblebee recovered, and lunged onto his attacker, knocking it on its back.

Screaming in Cybertronian, the black machine dug its claws into Bee's shoulders. The Autobot let out an amplified scream as dark fluid seaped out of his wounds. The Decepticon said something in Cybertronian, his malicious voice laced with electronic amplification as he dug his claws in deeper.

"Bee!" Carly screamed, feeling her terror flare up.

Bumblebee violently jerked his body to the left as he jumped into the air, breaking his attacker's grip, and slashing its abdomen with the armor on his foot. For Carly, time seemed to slow as her guardian deployed his cannon and fired two hot plasma orbs into the Decepticon's face, causing its body to pull back.

Quickly recovering from the blow, the black machine charged forward, plowing into Bumblebee. The Autobot grunted, his pain hitting a climax. Then, like a piece of garbage, the Decepticon threw the yellow robot into the ground.

No longer able to bear the sight, Carly ran towards the two, grabbed a small pipe near the junkyard, and smashed it into the Decepticon's leg. Irritated, the malicious robot looked down at the human, and prepared to slash her with his metal claws.

"Not so fast!" called a deep voice. Jazz then tackled the black robot, then flipped in front of him, landing on his silver feet. "Sorry to crash the party." The Autobot deployed a machine gun, and began firing rounds into the machine.

"Carly!" Sam yelled, pulling the brunette onto the ground. The two covered their necks as lasers and bullets tore through the air above them.

Looking up for a split second, Carly saw symbols engraved into one of Jazz's bullets: symbols like those on the AllSpark. Suddenly, the Decepticon let out a vicious roar, and charged forward, thirsting for the Energon inside the Autobot's body.

Bumblebee tackled the black robot, and rolled down the hill atop him. Once the two fell into the junkyard, the Autobot lept off of its attacker, and stared him down.

"Bluestreak," Jazz said, his voice confident. "PowerLink!" The blue Mini-Con jumped into the air, shifted out of his orb form into his new vehicle form, and bonded to Jazz's shoulder.

Carly and Sam watched in amazement as the silver Autobot's armor flashed over with blue energy, and two long blades deployed from his arms (connected to his body at the elbows). Jazz charged forward, swinging his arms back and forth rapidly. With a long grunt, the machine jumped into the air, and pierced the Decepticon's chest with his weapons.

The black robot screamed in agony. Jazz pulled out his blades as Bumblebee deployed his plasma cannon, and shot the Decepticon in the chest, destroying its Spark. The machine fell backwards into the dirt.

"Showed that bitch," Jazz declared.

Bumblebee nodded, and let out an amplified "Yeah", one of the few words he could still formulate.

"Whatter you doing here?" Carly demanded. "I told you I was doing this alone."

"Yeah, but I'm your friend," Sam argued. "And I wasn't gonna let you die for something as stupid as..."

"I didn't ask you to step in," Carly interrupted. "Why don't you just stay out of my life!"

"Why, so you can kill yourself because your brother payed for your car!" Sam shot back, her voice flaring into a rageful scream.

"You don't understand!" Carly hollered, her voice becoming furious and graveled.

"What don't I understand?" Sam screamed, her face clenching and turning red. "Tell me what the hell don't I understand!"

The two continued to argue, their voices continuing to raise. Finally, the two Autobots stepped forward, and stared at the girls. Their presences shaming Carly and Sam, the teens stopped their argument.

"Did you find the glasses?" Sam finally said, breaking down her angered pride.

"Yeah," Carly answered, putting Daniel's glasses into the blond's hand. The brunette let out an angry sigh. "...Thank you for helping me."

"...That's what friends are for," Sam replied. "Jazz, Bee, and Bluestreak did the real work."

The blue Mini-Con detached himself from Jazz's shoulder, and transformed into his robot form, standing beside his ally.

"Come on," Jazz said, showing no enthusiasm for the reunion. "Let's get these to Optimus."

"Hey!" called a familiar voice. "Carly! Sam!" From over the hill, Freddie came towards the group.

"Nuts," Carly muttered, knowing their secret had just been exposed.

"I...Whoa," said Freddie, stopping dead in his tracks. "W-w-what the..." The teenager felt astonishment beyond his imagination.

"...We'll explain later," Sam interrupted, impatiently walking forward. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"I, uh, I saw Carly take off," Freddie began, trying to keep his eyes on Sam and off the machines. "And I, uh..."

"Take a breather, kid," Jazz replied, holding out his hand.

Suddenly, a giant gust of wind struck the group, and the sound of propellers turning filled the air. Carly, Sam, and Freddie covered their eyes as a helicopter shined its spotlight at them. "Freeze!" yelled a soldier, clad in camouflage.

The Autobots held out their fists, and prepared their weapons.

"Worst case," Sam declared, gazing up at the other two copters flying towards them.

Three squad cars drove up, surrounding the group. From each vehicle, two men wearing black suits and ties exited, tapping the guns in their pants pockets. Without a trace of fear, the men walked towards the teens and their Autobot allies.

"What the hell do you guys want?" Jazz demanded, his voice strong and threatening.

"We would like to speak with you six," answered one of the men, his voice confident.

"Then drop the guns," Sam replied, seeing their through the agents' false peacefulness.

"I'm afraid we can't do that," another agent replied, stepping forward and wearing a cocky smile on his thin face. "Now, please,...surrender, and no one will be hurt."

"Except them, right?" Carly said. "Since they're not human, nothing's stopping you from doing whatever you want to them...since the constitution doesn't mention aliens. Is that right?"

"...Will you come peacefully?" the agent replied, refusing to address the question.

Carly and Sam looked at Freddie, then at Jazz, Bumblebee, and Bluestreak. For a second, every one of them seemed to share the same thought.

"...No," Carly answered, her voice strong.


	8. Standing Up

iTransformers

Chapter Eight: Standing Up

"Arrest them!" the overly-confident man yelled, the veins in his neck bulging. "Bring the aliens back to headquarters."

The agents approached Carly, Sam, Freddie, and their Autobot allies. Growing furious, Jazz, Bumblebee, and Bluestreak deployed their weapons (Jazz's machine gun, Bee's plasma cannon, and a laser pistol of Bluestreak's).

"Fire!" yelled one of the agents. With that, the men opened fire on the robots. Sparks bounced off their surfaces, but no real damage was done. The teenagers covered their faces out of reflex.

"Piss off!" Jazz yelled, firing a low-level stun blast at the cocky man.

On contact, the man fell to the floor and began screaming and writhing in agony. "Somebody help me!" he screamed, his confidence gone. "Grab the kids!" Like the drones they were, the other men followed their commander's order, and pulled Carly, Sam, and Freddie's hands behind their backs, binding them tightly.

"Lemme go," Freddie snarled, trying to elbow his abductor.

Suddenly, a great rumbling sound erupted from over the hill. Headlights flashed, and a siren blared loudly.

"Ratchet," Carly whispered, feeling comfort.

Blowing a massive cloud of dust into the air, a blue Peterbilt with ghost flames painted on the top and sides of its long hood. Following the semi was a black Topkick pickup truck, a yellow Search and Rescue Hummer, and a pink motorcycle being driven by a woman wearing a leather suit.

Watching in disbelief, the agents kept their guns raised. Much to their horror, however, the vehicles began to transform into robots similar to those with the humans.

Standing under one of the helicopter's lights, Optimus glared at the men, his new armor glistening: his face, which was now covered with blue armor was still powerful and comforting. The seven's on his head were now two sets of tall but fairly thin white rectangles-the taller one in front of the other on both sides. Now covering Prime's chest were two windows from his truck form. His legs were now white and covered with blue armor that covered his knees with a point, and grew thicker lower down. The armor around his lower arms up to his wrists was now thicker and red, his hand silver and highly textured. On the outside of each of the Autobots shoulders was a tall smoke stack lined with medium-sized holes. Groaning with dissatisfaction, Optimus's presence struck fear into every government agent's hearts. "Threatening the humans was a poor decision," he said, his deep, heroic voice laced with anger. "Autobots,...relieve these men of their weapons."

Ironhide, Arcee, and Ratchet activated their magnetic manipulating function, and pulled the guns and tazers onto their metal arms.

"Let the children go," Optimus ordered, his aggravation growing. "...Now!"

The agents threw their hands into the air, allowing the teens to go to their defenders' sides. Arcee put her hand on Carly's shoulder. "Are you alright?" she asked, gently.

"Yeah," Carly answered, still uneasy.

"You have five seconds to explain yourselves before we get angry," Ironhide threatened, deploying his cannons and aiming them at the men.

The Autobots surrounded the government agents at all angles. None of the humans spoke.

"You don't seem afraid," Optimus said, bending down, reaching close to an eye level with the commander. "Aren't you surprised to see us?"

With a gulp, the man looked his opposer in his blue, shining eyes, which were composed of complex mechanical parts. "Uh, I'm not authorized to answer that question," he said, trying to keep his voice steady.

"What do you want with us?" Jazz demanded, stepping closer to the agents.

"Again,...not authorized," replied the man, his audacity not letting up.

"Let me see about that," Sam said, walking up to the commander. "Bluestreak, hold him for me, will yuh?"

With an electronic response, the blue Mini-Con tightly grabbed the man's arms, and pulled them behind his back, his metal hands keeping a tight grip.

"Hey, what is this?" the agent demanded, trying to struggle.

"Shut up!" Sam replied, thrusting her fist into the man's stomach, causing him to let out a "hoop", then double over in pain. "Tell us what you want."

Suddenly, five more helicopters approached with five more police cars speeding below them.

"Speaker phones," whispered one of the agents. "I love 'em."

"Optimus," Ironhide called. "Incoming!" The black machine thrust his cannon into the ground, releasing a wave of counter electric energy in the vehicles' path, throwing them off course.

"Those helicopters are armed," Ratchet declared, observing the military fighters flying at them.

"Roll out!" Optimus ordered.

The Autobots transformed into their vehicle modes, then took off. Optimus, however, remained in his robot form, and layed his hand on the ground in front of Sam, Carly, and Freddie. "Up you go," he said, his voice gentle.

"Are you sure about..." Freddie began to say to Carly.

"Just go!" Sam yelled, pushing the boy forward. The three ran into the Autobot's hand, let him carefully wrap his fingers around them, then felt him run.

Every agent present gave chase. Two cars, which had just recovered from Ironhide's blow, followed Arcee, the men inside shooting handguns out their windows. The female Autobot dodged every shot with agile swerves. Making a sudden U-turn, the pink motorcycle transformed into her robot form, and lunged straight through the windshield of one of the cars, bursting out of its back window. Glass shot into the air, leaving a gash on one of the men's cheeks. While falling to the ground, the Autobot turned upward, and fired several laser blasts into the car's tires, sending it into a swerve.

Meanwhile, Optimus ran down the road, shielding the three teenagers from enemy fire. "Hang on," he said, leaping down from a hill and entering the city of Seattle. The helicopters followed from above, but lost Optimus as he went between two skyscrapers.

"We lost him," declared one of the pilots, whose voice was altered by the radio equipment he was wearing. "He's got no IR signature, I can't track him...No, we've lost him." The copters tried in vein to locate the Autobot.

After passing through the town, Optimus ducked into a walkway by a canal, and lept into the near-hollow area under the bridge, holding onto the complex bars on both of his sides, trying to keep Carly, Sam, and Freddie safe. However, Sam lost her balance, and fell forward. Carly grabbed her arm, trying to pull her back, only to be pulled down by her friend's momentum. Freddie put in one futile attempt to help the two by taking Carly's hand, and found himself plummeting to the ground. Optimus let out a desperate grunt as he pushed out his legs, trying to stop the humans' fall.

The three began hollering in fear as their grips on one another broke, and the cement seemed to race towards them. Bumblebee suddenly flipped beneath them, catching the three in his hands. The Autobot then lost his balance, and fell to his knees, dropping the humans safely on the ground.

Carly moaned as her back hit the cold, damp cement. "Thanks, Bee," she said, not opening her eyes. The girl looked at her guardian, and saw a swarm of soldiers surround him.

One of the men was carrying a long black tube firing out a thick cloud of low-impact liquid nitrogen, and doused the Autobot. Another man and one woman ran up, carrying two more hoses, drenching Bumblebee in white fog.

Time seemed to slow down: "No!" Carly screamed, running forward. Sam tried to hold her back, knowing there was nothing any of them could do, but her grip wasn't strong enough, and the brunette charged forward. The teen violently pushed down one of the soldiers, and began dousing him with the liquid nitrogen, all rationality abandoned.

Two soldiers grabbed Carly, and pulled her back.

"You bastards!" Sam screamed as three man grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back.

A government agent wrestled Freddie to the ground, and two more men put his arms in handcuffs. "No!" the teenager screamed, the veins in his neck bulging out.

Bumblebee tried to stand, but his freezing legs gave out, and he collapsed. Holding his hand out towards those he vowed to protect, the Autobot let out an electronic groan, sorrow showing in his blue robotic eyes.

"Bumblebee!" Carly screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice reaching a bellowing pitch, and her face tensing up until it throbbed. Her scream seemed to echo throughout the entire area.

Optimus looked at the horrific events taking place, but knew there was nothing he could do without endangering the humans.

"Prime," called Jazz, jumping into the crevice under the cliff. "We have to do something."

"There is nothing we can do now, Jazz," Optimus replied, his voice sorrowful and filled with regret. "The only one who can do anything right now is Arcee, but I fear she's too distant to get here in time."

The two were forced to watch as Carly, Sam, and Freddie were dragged away. Prime spotted Daniel's glasses falling out of Carly's pocket, landing safely on the wet walkway.

"Laserbeak," Optimus whispered. The orange bird flew out of Prime's chest armor, and landed on his shoulder. "Follow the children. Make sure they're safe." The Mini-Con flew off. "Fly true, my friend."

The bird flew high into the air, keeping his watchful camera/eyes on Carly, Sam, and Freddie as they were forced into a car and driven to an unknown location, and Bumblebee was dragged away.

Optimus put his hands on his hips, staring into space with sorrow and remorse weighing heavily on his Spark. _Please, Primus, _the Autobot prayed. _Let them be alright._


	9. Things Change

iTransformers

Chapter Nine: Things Change

Optimus stood among the war-torn grounds of Cybertron, staring into the black skies above him. A large cannon covering his right arm, the Autobot charged forward, trying to see through the fire and thick clouds of smoke.

"Prime!" called a gruff voice from among the laser blasts. "They're closin' in!"

"Hang on, Hound," Optimus called back, his shield covering his mouth. "The battle is almost over." The heroic machine charged forward, his armor clanging as he ran through the metallic wasteland.

Suddenly, a flash of light broke the Autobot's concentration, and he found himself on Earth. Slowly, Optimus remembered that his home world laid in ruins.

"Prime," Arcee said, her voice somewhat urgent. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, Arcee," Optimus answered, lifting himself up onto his feet. "I apologize...My mind seems to have drifted into a temporary stasis. Any word from Laserbeak?"

"Yes, we just received word," Arcee answered. "Here's their location." The female Autobot projected a holographic image from her palm, showing the latitude and longitude of Sam, Carly, Freddie, Spencer, and Laserbeak.

"The Hoover Dam," Optimus declared. "Thank you, Arcee...Autobots, assemble."

Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet, Bluestreak, Firestar, and Leader-1 gathered around Optimus and Arcee. The female robot stepped back, standing among her other allies.

"I have learned the location of the humans from Arcee and Laserbeak..." Optimus announced. "They have been taken to a historical landmark in the river of Colorado. I can only hope that Bumblebee is with them. Our mission is, above all, to save the AllSpark...but we cannot risk the lives of our human allies." The Autobot looked down on the ground, and spotted Daniel Shay's glasses. Bending down on his knee, Optimus gently picked up the device, and wrapped in his metal fingers.

"Prime," Ratchet replied. "I know this is our own fault...But are the lives of several humans really worth risking the fate of Cybertron?"

"Hey, don't forget," Jazz yelled. "Bumblebee's hide is on the line too...If the kids die...everything he risked his Spark for is out the window. Besides... it's my fault for not saving him."

"Stop blaming yourself, Jazz," Optimus replied. "All that matters now is saving the humans." Prime then transformed into his truck form. "Transform and roll out!" With that, the other Autobots transformed, Ironhide joining with Bluestreak, Arcee and Firestar merging, Leader-1 taking refuge inside Optimus's armor, then drove towards the location Laserbeak sent them.

Meanwhile, Carly, Sam, Freddie, and Spencer sat in a white jail cell inside the Hoover Dam.

"This is miserable," Carly exclaimed, not able to even fathom her emotions. "...I can't take this."

"It'll be okay, Carls," Spencer replied, trying to be strong. "They can't do anything to us."

"I know, it's just..." Carly began to say, her eyes blurring over with hot tears, her throat throbbing, and her words quaking. "I...I can't take this." The thought of her friends seeing her breaking down made the girl's pain even worse, and the tears started pouring down like rain.

"Carly," Spencer said, warmly embracing his sister. "Ssh...ssh." Carly closed her eyes, and turned her cries into heavy breaths. "It's alright," the young man whispered. "Sssh."

Sam and Freddie tried to look away, trying to take away from Carly's pain. As friends, it was all they could do for her at this time: let her have her emotional outburst, then heal without shame.

"Come on," Spencer whispered, his voice loving. "Remember..." Carly took in a deep, shaking breath, struggling not to break down into a new crying fit. "Remember that song Mom used to sing you?" No longer aware of others being in the room, the young man began to sing to his sister. "Never saw the sun...shining so bright..." Spencer sang, his voice so light it was practically a whisper. "Never saw things...going so right."

Finally, Carly managed to control herself, her tears running dry. Wiping her moist, puffy eyes, the girl took in several shaky breaths, then began to settle down.

Hours passed. Sam remained quiet, supporting her head on her right hand, her expression depressed. Ashamed of her previous moment of weakness, Carly refused to look at the others.

"I can't believe this," Freddie finally declared, resting his head against the cold brick wall. "...Can someone please tell what's going on?"

"Do you have an hour?" Sam replied, trying to keep the mood somewhat light.

"Wait...just...those robots I saw...they're good guys, right?" Freddie said, still confused.

"Yeah," Carly answered, not looking at the boy.

"Kinda like Arnold in Terminator 2," Freddie joked. "...Then, uh, why are we in prison?"

"It's the government," Spencer answered. "They don't understand sh..."

Suddenly, the door to the prison section opened, and a man clad in a black suit entered. "Please come with me," he said, opening the iron bar door. Not knowing the rational thing to do, the four followed the man.

From an air vent, Laserbeak filmed the events, preparing to send more information to his Autobot comrades. The robotic bird silently flew away, seeking another vent system to observe his friends through.

"I realize you didn't have the warmest welcome from my associate," the man said. "I apologize for that...But we need you to cooperate with us."

"First tell us what's going on," Sam demanded.

"And tell us where Bumblebee is," Carly added.

"...I'll talk to my superiors," the man replied, presenting an agreeable image. "But for right now, I'm not authorized to give you any information. Trust me, though...you'll be alright."

Finally, the group made into the room the soldiers were waiting in. Inside, the air was icy, and baffled silence filled every corner of the humans' minds.

"Ladies and gentlemen," greeted Rosenburg, stepping in from another room. "Carly and Spencer Shay, Samantha Puckett, and Fredward Benson... I apologize for the behavior of my men." Mark glared at the cocky agent, who lowered his head.

"Where's Bumblebee?" Carly demanded. "The yellow robot your goons captured."

"Watch your mouth, kid," snarled one of the Sector 7 agents, stepping forward.

"Are you in any position to give us orders?" Sam replied, bold and rash as ever. "Last I checked, you needed us to drag your asses out of the fire."

"Please, please," Mark said, trying to calm the room. "There is nothing to fight about. We are all working towards a common goal here... Allow me to introduce the being that united our cause." The elderly man lead the soldiers and civilians to the platform, and ordered lights be shined on the frozen specimen.

"My gosh," Carly exclaimed, her bewildered voice practically in a whisper as she stared up at the atrocity.

"Megatron," Spencer added, his voice grave. "You guys, this is the leader of the Decepticons. They're trying to kill us."

Freddie looked over at the Shay siblings, deeply confused. "So wait..." he said. "Is there, like, some kind of war going on?"

"That's right," Sam answered. "The good guys are the Autobots, the ones we met last night. They like humans, and treat the Mini-Cons like living beings. Right now, we're all fighting over a giant cube called the AllSpark."

"...That makes sense," Fred replied, feeling a mental numbness begin to form inside him. Everything felt so sureal, so impossible to fathom. The boy felt his breath grow uneasy, and tension well up in his neck.

"Giant cube," Rosenburg whispered, scratching his chin.

"You know where it is, don't you?" Carly replied, her tone becoming confident.

"...The Hoover Dam wasn't just built because of a flooding problem," the elderly man declared. "Something as powerful as this...All-Spark sends out immense radio-active signals: Signals that could reach life beyond our planet."

"And what better way to shield that signal than with layers of solid metal and concrete," Spencer summarized.

Freddie began to roughly run his fingers through his hair, his arms beginning to tremble as his tension welled up inside them. "Aaah!" he screamed. "I can't take this!"

"Freddie," Carly called.

"No! No! Stop it!" the boy shouted, barely able to formulate sentences. "Just stop it! None of this makes any f***n' sense!"

"Calm down, son," Mark replied, his voice gentle. "I know this is a lot to take in...but just try to relax."

"Stop it! Stop it!" Freddie screamed, his tone becoming violent.

"Sedate him," one of the agents ordered.

"Wait a minute," Lennox called out. "He's just a kid."

"Stand down, son," Russo ordered. "Don't step out of line again."

"Can we just wait a second," Carly hollered. "Freddie, tell you what, you can go home...forget everything you've seen the last few hours. Okay? Does that work for you?"

"N-n-no," Fred stuttered, his tension welling up inside the back of his neck. "I just...I can't...I mean, I can't take this. It all seems so insane." _Freddie began to fathom his emotions: every concept of rationality he lived and abided by was being disproved before his very eyes: robots from outer space. The set rules of reality being shattered by a government-hidden secret, which resulted in a possible lifetime of false history. It was all so unbearable, so impossible to fathom while hindered by the principle of common sense and science's chemical explanations, as well as society's self-imposed status quots that force all people to conform. Now everything was in question..._ "I can stand it for you, Carly." Puppy _love; what a pathetic idea, despite being glorified by shallow teenage sitcoms. But in so many ways, it was the only thing that Freddie still had._

Carly nodded, not knowing how to properly react, and at the same time, gaining an understanding of her long-time friend's ageless crush. "...Now, what about the cube?" she asked.


	10. Enemies Gathered

iTransformers

Chapter Ten: Enemies Gathered

"Sector 7 agents found the artifact off the coast of Australia and moved it here several months before Megatron was found by none other than Daniel Shay," Rosenburg informed the group as they proceeded down the dark hallway.

"Daniel Shay?" asked Carly, astounded. "My great grandfather?"

"Yes, ma'am," the elderly man answered. "Spencer, Carly, your grandfather made one of the most important discoveries of the century. They said he was insane...look where we are now because of him. He always said that the public's opinion of him would protect the secrets."

"Wow," Carly whispered, a smile growing on her face. Suddenly, the girl remembered her new friend. "That's what he meant when he said 'no sacrifice, no victory'...Wait a minute...show us where Bumblebee is before we do anything else."

"Of course," Mark replied, his voice calm and agreeable. The man then turned into another dark hallway. Carly, Sam, Freddie, and Spencer followed him, expecting the worst.

Meanwhile, the Autobots raced down the highway, guided by the directions Laserbeak sent them. Despite the confident look on her hologram pilot's simulated face, Arcee felt a deep sense of worry for her human allies. Optimus felt guilty for involving innocent beings in his specie's war, and a sense of duty towards Earth. Jazz was determined to save Bumblebee, and the humans, who proved to be more profound than he had ever imagined. In fact, some could even say he liked them. Ironhide. driven by his own memories of wars, felt compassion for the four humans and Bumblebee, as well as the urgency to retrieve the AllSpark. Plus, a second shot at those agents would be nice. Ratchet, being the scientific mind of the Autobots, refused to show any trace of interest towards the creatures he'd been forced to ally himself with, other than a natural sense of loyalty, which could be felt for any living being put in harm's way by his fault (be it direct or otherwise). _Jazz told me about the human's refusing to betray Bumblebee, _the medic thought to himself. _From all of my years of research, their species has never ceased to disappoint me...but Carly, I think her name was, seems so different. Perhaps there is hope for this race after all._

"Prime," Jazz called from over a radio frequency. "How are we gonna help Bee?"

"Our main priority is the humans' safety," Optimus replied. "We cannot do anything that may jeopardize them."

"But we can't just leave him to die," Jazz shot back, growing upset. "Who knows what those humans are doing to him."

"Bumblebee is a brave soldier," Optimus replied, his voice grave. "He knew what he was getting into. It's what he would have wanted... I would gladly take his place, but right now, our only option is to locate and rescue the humans."

"It's not right," Jazz said, defeated.

"I know," Optimus responded. "Humans are a young race...not so different than how we once were:...untrusting, hateful...But they must not suffer from our mistakes."

Under the dramatic sunset, its passionate yellow, orange, and crimson colors, the Autobots' polished exteriors glistened. However, from above them, a gray Military jet cast a shadow over the land. On its tail fin, a black insignia reflected light. It somewhat resembled the Autobot emblem, but with several sinister twists: its head was divided into three horns, with the center point cleaved into a sharp U. shape. Its eyes were in a thin scowl position, with no mouth below it. Among other differences, the lines were sharper and more Gothic-inspired. "Soundwave, I have a visual on the Autobots," said the machine, his voice higher in pitch, but smokey and hoarse. "Send the other Decepticons the coordinates. Starscream, out."

"Bumblebee!" Carly screamed as she saw the yellow Autobot laying on a large metal table, being doused with a gas form of nitrogen. Large metal arms were grabbing at his armor. "Let him go!"

Rosenburg looked up to a boxed-in lab roughly ten feet above his head. "Stop the machines!" he cried. "Let the alien go!" With that, the gas stopped flowing, and the claws detracted into the ceiling.

Still weak, the yellow robot let his head move from side to side, the joints of the neck feeling frail. Returning to full conscious, Bumblebee deployed a guard over his face: it was mostly yellow, covering the eyes with two thick, black lenses, resembling insect eyes. The Autobot's 7-shaped horns were now pointed upward, like the antennae of a bee. Aiming his cannon at his imprisoners, the Autobot violently moved from side to side, scanning the room.

"Bee!" Sam yelled. "Bee, it's alright!"

"They're not gonna hurt you anymore," Carly called. "Please, put down the gun."

Bumblebee let out a fierce grunt, and continued jerking back and forth.

"...Come on, man," Freddie called out, finally allowing him to accept the existence of other life. "You have believe us! We're your friends."

"Please, Bee," Carly added, her throat beginning to ache.

Managing to calm himself, the Autobot hid his cannon, then forced his helmet back on top of his head. Bumblebee then let out a sad sigh, and looked at his friends.

"It's over, man," Spencer said. "They know where the AllSpark is. They're gonna take us to it."

Bumblebee nodded, shocked by what he was hearing, then got down from the table. "Let's go," said the Autobot, using a recording of Jeff Bridges from the 1980's film "Tron". With that, the robot activated his Energon tracking system, and led the group down a dark hallway.

Carly walked beside Lennox. "Hey," she said. "Thank you for standing up for my friend back there. Sorry 'bout the goon comment."

"No problem," the young man replied. "The name's Ron, by the way. Ron Lennox."

"Carly Shay," the teenager introduced herself. "Bumblebee's my guardian. That's why he's so hostile around guys with guns when I'm around."

"After all this is over," Ron replied. "Would you mind explaining all of this stuff to me really slowly?"

"Sure thing," Carly giggled.

Finally, the group reached a giant chamber, being lit by a gigantic, shining cube with cryptic symbols carved into it. The room was coursing with energy, distorting the visibility to a degree.

"Whoa," Spencer exclaimed, taking in the raw power that sat above him. "That must be the AllSpark."

"I've never seen anything like it," Sam added, bewildered. The energy caused the teenager's blond hair to blow.

Carly stepped next to Bumblebee, who was dwarfed by the cube, but standing staunchly despite that. Almost instinctively, the Autobot put his hands out around the two sides of the cube. Blue energy began to course from its exterior, and thousands of small cubes formed as the AllSpark began to shrink. Suddenly, a bolt of energy shot out from the Cybertronian artifact, and struck Carly.

Bumblebee let out an amplified scream of shock, though it didn't drawn out Carly's cries of pain as the energy coursed through her body.

"Carly!" Spencer called, running up to his sister.

"Stay back, son," commander Russo replied, holding his hand out in front of the young man. "That cube could be radioactive."

"I don't care," Spencer shouted, breaking the man's grip, and running to his sister's side. "Carly." The girl's brother bent down on his knees, and held her hand.

Carly didn't respond, her eyes remaining closed. Suddenly, with a flash, images began to assault her mind: images of Cybertron. Images of Primus disappearing into the stars. In no more than a second, the girl saw herself standing under an ocean of stars, watching Autobots and Decepticons, Mini-Cons and Mini-Cons fighting to the death. Machines dipped their cupped hands into glowing streams of fluid, and slowly, weakly drank. _Energon._ In the next instant, Carly found herself back on Earth, with her friends, guardian, and brother standing above her.

"She's coming to," Lennox declared. "Don't crowd her."

"Carly," Spencer said, his voice gentle. "Are you alright?"

"...Yeah," the brunette answered. "...But Primus is dead."

"What?" Sam and Spencer replied, shocked. Bumblebee dropped his head in sorrow.

"But right now, all that matters is saving the AllSpark," Carly announced. "Go git 'em, Bee."

Bumblebee nodded, then put his hands back on the cube. Slowly the AllSpark compressed its self into a small cube, no bigger than an old-time milk basket. Several small sparks of energy shocked the Autobot's fingers, causing him to pull back for a second, but finally, Bumblebee was able to safely hand the cube to his allies.

"Wow," Sam declared. "How did you..."

"Mass," Bumblebee answered, using a recording of Bill Nigh, the Science Guy. "Displacement," the robot completed, using a recording from a history special dealing with early civilizations' developing irrigation.

"That is so funky," Lennox declared, bewildered.

Meanwhile, the Autobots stood atop the Hoover Dam, planning what to do.

"There are few openings we could fit into," Optimus declared. "Any damaging of the landmark's surface could be deadly for the humans inside."

"I'll go inside," Arcee volunteered. "I'm about the size of an average human."

"You must use stealth," Ratchet informed her. "Should anyone see you, our cover will be blown, especially if any civilians witness an..."

"I know, Ratchet," Arcee interrupted. "Thank you." With that, the female Autobot slid down the side of the dam.

"Please Primus, let this work," Ironhide whispered.

"Now for the AllSpark," Optimus said, holding the glasses in front of him. With that, the Autobot leader said a quiet prayer, and projected a light from his optic receptors. A hologram of the globe, covered with blue-colored lines formed in front of the lenses. "...The AllSpark is inside the dam." Optimus touched the side of his head, activating a communication link between himself and Arcee. "Arcee, I am sending you the coordinates to the cube. It is inside the dam."

"Thanks, sir," the female Autobot. Arcee then snuck into a storm drain, and made her way towards the cube.

"Prime," Jazz said, breaking the silence. "What do we do when we find the AllSpark?"

"We will board the Ark once again, and return it to Cybertron," Optimus answered. "Hopefully, the government will devise an explanation, as they did for the Phoenix Lights phenomenon."

Ratchet chuckled a little under his breath.

"And what if the Decepticons find is first?" Ironhide replied. "Or if we should fall to them before we reach the Ark?"

"...Then I shall merge the cube with my Spark," Optimus gravely answered, opening his chest, and revealing a glowing orb inside of the small chamber behind the truck doors. "The Decepticons must not get their hands on it."

"That's suicide, Prime," Ratchet declared. "The cube is raw power. It could destroy you both."

"A necessary sacrifice to bring peace to this planet," Optimus responded. "This is our war, not the humans'...It has been an honor to serve at your sides. Autobots! Roll out!" Following Optimus Prime's order, the robots charged forward.

Watching the Autobots' every move, and listening with government-grade equipment, a small wasp coated with shining silver armor forged entirely out of metal walked along the hot brick surface of the dam. Generating an amplified squawk, the Insecticon flared out its wings, and took flight inside the Hoover Dam, entering through the storm drain Arcee used.

"This is awesome," Spencer exclaimed, holding the AllSpark. "The future of an entire race. This is art."

Bumblebee tapped Carly on the shoulder. "Tell me how he died," he begged, using a recording of the emperor in "The Last Samurai".

"...Primus," Carly replied, feeling sorrow creep into her mind. "I...I don't know. T-there was some kind of fight...There were other Autobots...working together. That's all I know. I'm sorry."

"Carly! Sam! Spencer!" called a familiar voice, sounding urgent.

"Arcee!" Sam called back. "We're alright. Where are you?"

The female robot dropped down from the ceiling, landing gracefully but hard on the floor. "Right here," she answered. "Bee...you're okay."

Bumblebee nodded, then lowered his head in sorrow.

"It's alright," Spencer assured the pink Autobot. "The government showed us where the cube is...but Carly told us...I guess the AllSpark showed her... Primus is dead."

Arcee kept her jaw open, a look of pure shock frozen on her face. Turning her head away from the humans, and staring at the floor, the Autobot replied: "...Let's just get the AllSpark. Primus would want us to know...that his Spark is now one with The Matrix." Despite her strong words, it was easy to tell Arcee was in pain. She took this matter so personally, so gravely.

"For what it's worth," Freddie stuttered. "I-I'm really sorry for your loss."

"This is Freddie Benson," Sam introduced. "He's one of our close friends."

"Thanks, Puckett," Freddie whispered, not used to being complemented by his friend/enemy.

"Come on," Arcee replied, putting a strong smile on her face. "Let's get out of here."

Suddenly, a loud buzzing sound tore through the air. Three robotic insects (the wasp that was spying on the Autobots, a large dragonfly that was hued metallic green and dark gray, and a fly) flew at the humans, their thin wings glistening under the lights. Carly, Sam, and Spencer threw themselves onto the ground, dodging the Insecticons. Freddie threw himself against the wall.

"What the hell are those things?" Russo yelled.

"No idea," Spencer called back. "Odds are, they're Decepticons."

Arcee deployed a cannon that covered her entire right hand, then began shooting at the robots. Realizing how damaging his attacks could be, Bumblebee merely swung his hands through the air, trying to strike down the Decepticons.

The insects flew past the humans, and raced down the hallway, using night vision to see through the darkness. Finally, the three reached the chamber Megatron was being held in.

"They're going towards Megatron!" Rosenburg screamed, his voice reaching a deep tone. With that, the soldiers charged into the room, their guns in hand. Carly, Sam, Freddie, and Spencer began to follow.

"Carly," Arcee called. All four of the humans turned around. "You have to get out of here. The AllSpark can't fall into Megatron's hands."

"But I have to..." Carly began to argue.

"The other Autobots are outside," Arcee interrupted. "Laserbeak!" The orange bird flew down from the ceiling, and landed on Carly's shoulder. "Please send her position to Optimus, Beak. Go, Carly."

Inside the large chamber, the wasp stabbed its blade-like legs into the hard drive of one of the super computers. Muttering an electronic chirp, the Insecticon sent a message to Starscream that translated to: "Waspinator infiltrating government computer...Freeing Master Megatron."

The fly violently stroked its wings up and down as it approached Megatron's massive, frozen body. However, before it could reach the hose spurting out the liquid nitrogen, it was caught in the freezing spray, and dropped to the floor in a layer of ice, shattering. Dragonfly charged at the soldiers, distracting them for a short time. The bullets missed it by only inches.

"Forget him, get the wasp!" an African-American soldier yelled.

Suddenly, the liquid nitrogen hose shut down.

"No!" one of the soldiers hollered.

Rosenburg ran into the room, followed by Bumblebee and Arcee.

"No!" Bumblebee shouted, his voice heavily amplified, and still very weak.

Arcee lunged into the air, and blasted Waspinator, severing his connection to the computer. However, the thawing process had already began. Loud cracking sounds emanated from the frozen Decepticon's body, which stood about 32 feet tall. Chunks of ice fell down from the fearsome machine. Suddenly, the Decepticon swung his right arm out, shattering the ice encasing its body.

"Move in!" Arcee ordered, racing forward on the single wheel her legs merged to form.

Megatron tore out of his icy prison, letting out a ferocious roar that echoed through the entire room. "I am...Megatron," the beast declared, his voice amplified and flowing with varying frequencies. Ignoring Bumblebee and Arcee's fire, the beast threw his clawed hand up into the air with malicious fury, smashing a platform suspended high in the air, knocking the two men standing on it to the cold ground, and their deaths. Megatron thrust his left hand into the wall, shattering the metal guarding it. With a monsterous roar, the machine violently transformed into a Cybertronian jet, and tore through the room, flying out through a large storm drain.


	11. Severity

iTransformers

Chapter Eleven: Severity

Megatron tore through the air, fire burning from his thrusters. Suddenly, the Decepticon flew upward, scaling the side of the dam. Starscream flew next to him, then transformed: The Decepticon had a bulky build, similar to that of an ape. His arms were long, and had claws for fingers. His legs were thin, though not disproportionate to the rest of his body, and his face was almost oval-shaped, lit up by two glowing red eyes.

Megatron growled under his hot breath. "Where is the AllSpark?" he demanded, his voice deep and snarling.

"The humans have it, Master Megatron," Starscream answered.

"Hmm," Megatron replied, his tone condescending and disappointed. "So, you fail me again, Starscream." The machine looked down at his servant, dwarfing him in so many ways. Megatron was tall, large and muscular in build. His hands consisted of black-clawed fingers and metal palms, his legs long and thickly built, like that of a linebacker, ending in two highly detailed feet that consisted of one thick point. "Send the Decepticons after the humans. Have them slaughter any Autobots aiding them."

"But...sir," Starscream replied. "The Autobots have already killed three of our soldiers. We don't stand a chance. Our brothers will perish."

Megatron snarled, then thrust his fist into Starscream's chest, knocking him on his back. "The Decepticons exist to serve their masters," he replied, growing furious. "All that matters is retrieving the AllSpark. The deaths of our warriors is but a minor set back."

Starscream remained on the ground, not daring to get up. Drinking in every word, the Decepticon grew disgusted.

"Do not question my orders again," Megatron warned, his voice so grave it was practically in a whisper. "Send the others!" With that, the monster transformed into his vehicle form, and took to flight.

Accepting his defeat, Starscream sent out a message to his fellow Decepticons, giving them the coordinates of the humans.

"Bonecrusher, pursuing," replied another Decepticon, using a Cybertronian language. The machine was in the form of an unusual armored truck, painted with dark orange so that it vaguely resembled the color of sand.

"Cyclonus, pursuing," said another Decepticon, who had taken on the form of an armed helicopter.

"Brawl, pursuing," replied a Decepticon, using Cybertronian. The behemoth was currently in the form of an army tank, and was leaving a caged-in area.

Meanwhile, Carly, Sam, Freddie, and Spencer ran outside, and saw their Autobot allies driving down the highway towards them.

"Optimus!" Carly called, holding the cube under her arm. Laserbeak remained perched on the brunette's shoulder.

A pink motorcycle drove up behind the humans, followed by the yellow Chevrolet. "Mission failed," Arcee said. "Megatron's escaped."

The Peterbilt truck swerved, parking sideways, just in front of the humans. "Carly, we must hurry," Optimus declared. "Follow us, and we will send the AllSpark onto our shuttle, out of harm's way. And thank you...for saving Bumblebee."

"Any time, big guy," Carly replied, smiling. "Come on, Bee." With that, Carly, Spencer, and Sam boarded the yellow Autobot. Laserbeak transformed into his camera mode, and flew into Spencer's pocket.

"Hop in, kid," Jazz said, opening one of his doors for the brunette boy.

"This is so weird," Freddie declared, hoping inside the silver car.

"Roll out!" Optimus called, his voice inspiring. Responding to the order, the Autobots drove down the highway, the Sector 7 agents following roughly one mile behind.

"I hope Prime knows about our new friends," Sam said, looking at Carly.

"He knows," said Arcee over Bumblebee's radio frequency.

"Prime, the Ark is currently above Seattle," Ironhide informed his leader. "I'm afraid we have some driving to do."

An armored truck began to catch up with the convoy, driving roughly twenty miles above the speed limit. The vehicle rammed into a van being driven by a young Caucasian man, who was returning to his wife and daughter after work. The car smashed hard into one of the guard rails, then rear-ended a pickup truck, killing the Caucasian man, and throwing the truck off course.

"Oh no," Spencer whispered, looking back.

The armored truck began to violently transform, two claws spawning from its armor, then piercing into the road. Soon, a vicious, muscularly-built Decepticon was former, its hands three long, curved claws, and screaming in Cybertronian.

Optimus continued driving, then transformed into his robot form. Leaping into the air, the Autobot thrust his right foot out, and landed in a fighting stance in front of Bonecrusher, his shield covering his mouth. Bonecrusher charged forward, then tackled Optimus. The two wrestled on the road, then fell off the ramp and onto a lower road. Optimus thrust his fist into the Decepticon's cheek, and was then pushed onto the ground with great force.

"Leader-1," the Autobot called. "PowerLink!" With that, the yellow Mini-Con transformed into a small sports car, and merged with Optimus's armor. Rainbow-colored energy coursed through Prime's body, and a large black cannon deployed over his left hand. "Goodbye." Optimus blasted off the Decepticon's head, killing it instantly.

Looking around, Optimus saw only two cars. Odds are, no one would believe their story, so the Autobot departed, trying to find a way to catch up with his teammates.

Meanwhile, Rosenburg looked at the remains of the lab Megatron was held in. "This is all my fault," he said to himself, dropping into his seat. "That thing's loose on the world because of me..." The elderly man stood up, and faced his peers. "Gentlemen...shut down Sector 7."

"But sir..." one of the agents began. This particular agent happened to be the cocky one Jazz hit with a stun gun not long before.

"Don't question me, Donalds" Rosenburg interrupted, walking out of the room. "I've done enough, anyway." The room fell silent, and the soldiers began to shut down the systems. "Alzera, January, come with me." Two men clad in dark suits followed their superior's instruction, and proceeded away from the dead sector. Donalds remained in the darkness, staring at the sight of finality before him.

The Autobots proceeded down the highway, being sure to keep a fair distance so as not to attract attention. Knowing Optimus was perfectly capable of finding his own way to Seattle, the others kept going.

"I think we lost 'em," Sam said, dropping back into her seat, and finally looking away from the window behind her. "Where are we?"

"I think this is Ely...still in Nevada," Spencer answered, recognizing the city a small distance in front of the Autobots. "Carly and I went here with our parents about five years ago."

"Oh yeah," Carly replied, admiring the city.

"We're going to have to make a detour," Ironhide declared, using the radio frequency. "The road's under construction ahead. But we must hurry." the Autobot's voice grew grave. "The AllSpark will determine the fate of this world."

The convoy turned off the road, and entered Ely. The sun was setting, painting the mostly dark sky red. Outside, the air was cool, sharpening the senses. One of the Military trucks pulled in front of Ironhide, then stopped.

Lennox exited the vehicle, and walked over to the black truck. "What's goin' on?" he asked, somewhat annoyed.

The black truck transformed into its robot form. "Road's out," Ironhide answered, no hostility in his voice. "We're taking a detour. It that a problem?"

"Shouldn't be," Lennox replied, looking up at the sky. "Hey...Captain."

Russo jumped out of his jeep, and ran towards Ronald. "What is it, private?" the man asked.

"Did we send for a jet?" Lennox replied, pointing up at a low-flying Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor above the city.

Ironhide scanned the vehicle on multiple levels. "It's Starscream!" he called, urgency drenching his tone. Responding to this information, the Autobots transformed into their robot forms, gently setting the humans on the road.

"Get to safety," Jazz instructed. "Now."

"Bumblebee," Ironhide called, beginning to lift up a truck hauling soda machines. "Help me with this." The yellow Autobot grabbed the other side of the truck, and pulled it up until its rear bumper hit the street. "Take cover!" For the first time since they'd met, Carly heard a hint of fear in Ironhide's voice. "We'll try to block his attacks."

"What's going on? Russo demanded, growing furious over what seemed like gross misconduct.

Suddenly, the truck the two Autobots were holding burst in a sea of flames, throwing every surrounding human and Autobot back: a bomb had been dropped. Sam felt the ground roughly smack into her left cheek, several pebbles cutting into her skin. Freddie smashed onto the cold asphalt, the back of his head growing numb. Carly felt her body uncontrollably rolling until she smacked into the brick wall of a building.

"Ow," the brunette groaned, her eyes tightly closed as pain flashed through her body. Suddenly, Carly's eyes shot open. "Bumblebee!" Terrified, horror coursing through her entire body, the teenager ran to her guardian's side as he lay on the ground, both of his legs blown off at the knees, and his armor stained with ashes. "Bee." Carly felt her throat begin to throb.

Bumblebee let out an amplified groan of agony, pulling his damaged body forward by the strength of his arms. Sam, Freddie, and Spencer saw their wounded ally pathetically trying to function, even with his terminal injuries.

"What was that?" Captain Russo hollered, pointing up at the jet.

"That was not an ally!" Ron screamed. "A Raptor does _not_ fly that low, sir."

"Guys, we have to help Bee," Carly called out, no longer aware of what was going on around her.

"Carly, if that thing's a Decepticon..." Spencer started, though his words were mostly mumbles in his sister's ears.

"No, we have to help Bumblebee!" Carly hollered. "He's hurt. We have to get him out of here."

"Carly, Carly," Sam called, grabbing her friend's shoulders. "Carly, relax. Relax."

"No, Bumblebee needs us," Carly shot back, desperately shaking her guardian's shoulders, trying to do something to make something better. Nothing made sense.

"Carly...Carly, we can help him," Sam replied. "Just calm down. Calm down...Give me the AllSpark."

"Whatter you doing?" Freddie asked the blond.

"You stay here. Take care of Bee," Sam began, taking the cube from under Carly's arm, and tucking it under hers. The girl's voice was growing frantic. "Me and Ratchet...or Jazz, 'er someone'll take the cube back to Seattle. Okay? Cuz we have to get it away from here. Carly, are you okay? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Carly replied, her breath slowing. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Sir, he's coming back," called out an African American soldier.

"Can you get Hornet, or...whatever his name is out of here?" Russo called.

"We can haul him away with that tow truck," Spencer suggested, gesturing over to an abandoned tow truck.

"Alright," Russo replied. "Dylan, Robert, start evacuating. Get everyone out of here." The African American soldier and an Asian soldier nodded, then ran towards a nearby building. "Get every weapon we have, and arm yourselves!"

Lennox and several other men ran to the vehicles they arrived in, and opened the cases carrying their arsenal. "Sir," Lennox called. "These things are ancient. There's no way we can..."

"You take what you cin git, boy," an older man with white hair worn in a flattop replied, his voice loud.

Suddenly, a loud rumbling sound thundered through the area. Sam felt the ground shake under her feet. A large tank, painted a metallic dark green rolled menacingly into the town, its cannon armed and loaded. Glass shook on the surrounding buildings, and several items inside them collapsed due to the vibrations.

"Oh gosh," Carly whispered, devastated.

With a sound that was almost loud enough to make glass shatter, a helicopter raged towards the group. On its sides were two black GAU-8 Avengers, which were firing at the windows of nearby buildings, shooting several people backwards, splattering their blood into the air with extreme pressure.

"Autobots!" Ironhide called. "Attack!" The black robot led Jazz, Arcee, and Ratchet into battle with their newest opponent.

The sound of gun and laser fire tore through the air, like thousands of fireworks going off in the humans' ears. Ironhide charged at the helicopter, then lunged in the air as it transformed into a Decepticon: its body was primarily silver with black under armor showing on its abdomen and elbow area. The face was almost insect-like, with a multi-sectioned viser for its eyes, and a thin area around its jaw. Instead of hands, the beast had claws, and the guns were mounted on its forearms. "Raah!" the beast screamed, preparing to slash Ironhide.

The Autobot suddenly deployed his cannons, and fired into Cyclonus's stomach, throwing the Decepticon back, and severely damaging its armor. Ironhide hit the ground hard, leaving a deep fracture in the pavement.

Jazz lept into the air, performed an aerial flip, and landed on top of the tank's cannon. "Decepticon punks," the young Autobot mocked his opponent. Jazz pulled the barrel upward, forcing it to fire involuntarily. Furious, the tank transformed into a bulky, savage-looking Decepticon. With a metallic grunt, Brawl began violently slashing his arms through the air, desperate to get the young Autobot off of him.

Spencer pressed two cords together, igniting a surge of electricity between them. Wincing at the flash of light, the young man pulled the cords apart, then pressed them together again. The engine rumbled. "Got it!" Spencer yelled, his voice gruff due to the position he was working in. With that, he pulled himself up on the road, lept into the driver's seat, then roughly pulled the stick into reverse. Its muffler loud and coarse, the truck backed up towards Bumblebee and Carly.

"Come on, Bee," Carly gently said, gently pressing her guardian against the tow truck. The girl grabbed one of the cables from the truck, and wrapped it around the Autobot's torso.

"Get that thing out of here ASAP!" Commander Russo ordered. Suddenly, the man gruffly yelped in pain, then shot backwards, clenching his rib. The only explanation Freddie could determine was one of the soldiers' bullets ricocheting of one of the Decepticon's armor.

One of the soldiers screamed, then ran to her commander's side. "He's been shot!" she yelled. "I need medical supplies. Now!"

Sam ran over towards a trunk, and pulled out several tools. "There's no First Aid kit in here!" she yelled. "Can you improvise?" The blond ran over to the female soldier with a pair of tongs, a pocket knife, and a blue lighter. "Please tell me you have morphine or something."

"Just get this hunk-a lead outta me," Russo replied, his voice weakening but still forceful. The soldier ignited the lighter and started waving it under the tongs.

"Lemme help with this," Spence said, bending down at the commander's side. "My father taught me how to make a tourniquet." The young man tore off the sleeve of his shirt, and began rolling it into a ball.

"Get that tow truck outta here!" one of the soldiers ordered.

"I've almost got it," Carly replied, feverishly working on securing Bumblebee. "Okay. Sam, give me the AllSpark."

"Come on, you piece of scrap," Jazz grunted, violently clinging onto the tank's neck. The Autobot deployed his machine gun, and began firing into Brawl's face.

Ironhide charged forward, and rammed the Decepticon full-on, knocking it backwards as Jazz lept off. "Bluestreak!" the Ironhide hollered. The blue Mini-Con sprung out of Jazz's diaphragm, and bonded with his other partner. His body coursing with blue energy, Ironhide's cannons merged with his wrists so that they surrounded his hands, their barrels uniting into one circular, red ring. "Jazz, get back!" The black machine's words reflected the danger he knew he was capable of. The silver Autobot jumped back, and watched as Ironhide's cannons fired burning rays of energy into Brawl, practically melting his jagged armor.

"Hurry," Sam called, handing her friend the cube. "I'll get Bumblebee to safety."

"Hey," Lennox called, running towards Carly, his gun in tote. "Alright, we have two two copters on their way. I need you to get to the top of that hotel down the street, light this flare, and give the drivers the cube."

"I can't...I just can't," Carly screamed, every horrific thing surrounding her finally breaking into her mind. Tears began to well up in her eyes, though she tried with all her might to restrain them.

"Listen to me," Lennox snarled, anger and gruff authority showing in his voice for the first time. "You're a soldier now. If you don't do this, we're dead. Now take the cube, and get on that building!"

"...Yes, sir," Carly finally replied, nodding her head. Looking back, the teenager saw her guardian give her a subtle nod of approval and encouragement. With that, Carly tucked the AllSpark under her right arm.

"Carly!" Spencer yelled, running over to his sister. "Carly, I can't leave Russo. Good luck out there...and I love you." The boy wrapped his arms lovingly around his sister, then let her go. Let go.

"Thanks, Spencer," Carly replied. The brunette looked for a clear path among the crossfires, then charged towards the hotel.

Cyclonus transformed into his helicopter form, flew forward and swooped just above Carly, firing its guns at her. Narrowly avoiding the burning slivers of lead, Carly screamed, ducked down hard, and kept running. Ratchet ran behind her, then grabbed the helicopter. "Keep going, Carly," he cried, breaking into the middle section of the bottom of the helicopter. The Autobot then tore out the central gas valve, causing Cyclonus' blades to halt. Ratchet then threw the Decepticon into the ground. A chunk of steel sprung from the alien, and sailed just above Carly's head. The girl tripped to dodge the projectile, and fell to the ground. Taking almost no time to recover, the brunette kept running, stumbling back to her feet. "Don't stop!"

Knowing the great severity of the situation, the girl kept pushing her body forward, knowing the Decepticons were thirsting for her blood.


	12. Destiny Breaks Even

iTransformers

Chapter Twelve: Destiny Breaks Even

Running down the street, Carly tried to silence her breathing, sensing a Decepticon around every corner. Burning bullets ripped through the air, ricocheting off the roads and shattering windows.

Suddenly, a loud screeching sound tore through the air. Sam's head shot back as a blue and red Peterbilt semi knocked over a stack of boxes and crates in an alley. "Optimus!" the blond screamed, overjoyed.

The truck's armor began to shift, grinding against its different sections as it rose to the form of a biped. Optimus then thrust his arms back into a fighting stance. "Are you alright, my friends?" he asked, his voice majestic as always.

"We're fine," Sam called back, glancing at Bumblebee. "We need to get Bee outta here, though."

"I will cover you," Optimus replied, walking in front of his allies. The machine then deployed his mouth guard. Cyclonus turned his head away from Carly, and furiously flew towards the Autobot leader. Bringing his optic sensors into a concentrated glare, Optimus charged forward, and grabbed the helicopter at its sides.

Suddenly, the Decepticon began to fire at random. _Must protect the humans, _Optimus told himself. The Autobot focused his strength, and thrust the assassin into the road, destroying two of its propeller blades.

"Leader-1, PowerLink," Prime called out. The yellow Mini-Con shot out of his partner's chest, and merged with his arm, activating the cannon on Optimus' left arm. With a loud groan, the Autobot assaulted his foe with a vicious blast of Cybertronian fire power, shattering its exoskull, and destroying its cerebral computer. "Well done, my partner." Leader-1 replied with a grateful, electronic dialing sound.

"Prime, Starscream!" Ironhide yelled, sighting the jet flying towards the ground.

With savage precision, the Decepticon swooped down, knocking Optimus off of his feet, hitting the ground with a loud thud, and shattering the road. Circling around, Starscream shot back at the Autobot. Quickly rising to his feet, the heroic machine charged forward. Suddenly, another jet; a silver- green Military fighter, flew from behind Optimus, then tore up just behind him. Sensing this, the Autobot lept into the air. "PowerLink!" the two declared. The two began to shift their armor, then merge together. Starscream pulled over to the side, desperate to escape his opponent, and smashed through a nearby building to his left.

Dropping out of the sky, the newly-formed Autobot's heavily armored legs depressed the asphalt. Standing roughly thirty-five feet tall, the machine bore its weapons; Optimus' black cannon over his its left arm, a multi-barreled sniper gun over its right, twin jet boosters on the back of his shoulder blades, and an Autobot shield over its chest. Optimus' body was still somewhat recognizable, especially the face. "Welcome to Earth, Jetfire," Optimus' voice announced.

"Glad to be working for you again, Prime," a higher-pitched but still gruff voice with an Australian accent replied.

"Bigger target," Starscream happily snarled, a smile forming on his face. The two Cybertronians charged at one another, their thrusters tearing through the air. Optimus swung his armored fist into the Decepticon's abdomen, thrusting him into an abandoned building; the glass shattered, bricks crumbled, and the entire structure gave way.

Sam and Freddie adjusted the settings in the tow truck, and took off with Bumblebee tied to the back. "Come on," Sam said under her breath. "Can't this thing go any faster?" Suddenly, Freddie caught Cyclonus out of the corner of his eye.

"My gosh," the brunette exclaimed. "Bee, can you take that one out?" Bumblebee nodded, and readied his cannon; aiming it at the Decepticon's facial region

Sam, growing frantic, pressed on the gas pedal. Bumblebee fired a burning blast of plasma at Cyclonus. However, the sudden burst of speed threw off his aim, resulting in an injury to the evil machine's leg.

"Sam, calm down," Freddie pleaded, feeling his heart race.

"I can't!" the blond screamed, her pulse spiking. "I can't do this anymore! This whole thing is nuts! I can't do it anymore!"

"It'll be okay," the brunette replied, struggling to act as a voice of reason. Sam was strong, confident, and independent, but this was all too much for her. "This'll all be over once Carly gets the cube away from here...They won't let them hurt us."

Bumblebee looked at Sam, and nodded. Swallowing hard, the blond nodded back. "Ready to finish that piece of rust?" she asked, slowly returning to her usual self.

"Yeah," Bumblebee answered with an enthused, electronic voice. Reloading his gun, the yellow Autobot fixed his sights on the recovering machine. Sam threw the truck into reverse, steering towards Cyclonus. Bumblebee launched round after round of Energon-infused energy at the threat.

Screaming in rageful agony, the Decepticon tried to charge forward at its foes, only to fall to the ground under both Bumblebee and the soldiers' fire. "Nice!" one of the soldiers yelled out, thrusting his fist down.

"I don't think it's over yet," Lennox replied, looking at Starscream start to recover.

Suddenly, a massive, grizzly aircraft flew overhead, obliterating an army jet that stood in its path, then spiraling towards the earth. Its parts grinding and screeching, the jet transformed into Megatron, who smashed into the road with a loud thud that shook the glass of the surrounding buildings. "Megatron," Ironhide gravely declared.

"Fall back!" Arcee ordered, waving her allies away from the threat. Firestar lept onto the pink Autobot's shoulder as she and Jazz lead the soldiers away from the Decepticon leader.

Optimus tore through the air, then landed hard on the ground. "Megatron," he said, his voice confident and grave as he entered a fighting stance.

"Prime!" the Decepticon growled. "My brother...still defending the plague of humanity."

"And I see your lust for power has not relented," the Autobot replied, showing no offense.

"Brother?" Spencer whispered as Russo was taken to a safe area.

The gray robot walked forward, everything about him emanating wickedness and power. "Pitiful," he said, his voice like an animal's snarls. "Even with the aid of your pathetic Autobot companions, you are nothing compared to me." For a second, time stood still.

"Disconnect, Jetfire," Optimus ordered. "This battle is my own."

"Understood," the Australian-sounding robot accepted before separating from his leader. Megatron was already charging forward, and knocked Optimus on his back. The Autobot thrust his weight to the side, knocking his enemy off of him. Optimus threw his fist into Megatron's cold face, sending sparks onto the road.

"You're so weak!" Megatron hollered, knocking his brother off his feet with a single slash of his arm. Picking himself up, Optimus grappled with the Decepticon. "Humans and Mini-Cons don't deserve to live," the gray machine snarled.

"Freedom is the right of _all_ sentient beings!" Optimus shot back, forcing Megatron back. "They deserve to choose for themselves."

"You forsake our planet for your own petty beliefs," Megatron snarled, his hatred burning like never before. "The AllSpark is our only hope to save our brethren."

"But at the cost of their's," Optimus fought back, pushing against Megatron.

Starscream rose to his bird-like legs, gazing at the battle. Several soldiers opened fire at the minor Decepticon, but to no avail. Looking around, Starscream took off into the air, and flew towards the heavens. Megatron deployed his blade, and swung it at Optimus, only to miss when he ducked. Lunging forward, the blue and red Autobot activated his fire sword, and slashed off a section of Megatron's shoulder. Recoiling in a second of pain, the Decepticon glared at his foe. "You still fight for the weak!" he screamed, hatred fueling every word. "And for that, you will die with them!" Megatron grabbed Optimus by one of the windows covering his chest, and thew him into a nearby glass building. Smashing his hands together, the Deception formed a massive cannon, and blasted it at Prime.

"Decepticon trash!" Ironhide exclaimed, leading Jazz, Arcee, and the Mini-Cons towards Megatron. The Autobots opened fire on the Deception, merely causing an irritation.

"Worthless underlings," Megatron scoffed, shooting the ground before the heroic machines and knocking them off balance. Jazz lept into the air with Bluestreak by his side.

"PowerLink!" the young Autobot commanded, his voice confident and strong. The two merged, and Jazz thew his arms out, letting the blades hack into Megatron's arm. "Not so tough without your goons, are yuh, punk?"

With a growl of displeasure, Megatron grabbed the Autobot. "How dare you oppose me?" he snarled.

"Jazz, fall back!" Optimus ordered, fearing for his ally's life. The Autobot sprang to his feet, and charged forward. "Jetfire, now!" The jet swooped down, and merged with his leader. The enhanced Autobot activated its boosters, and rammed Megatron full-on in his back. Jazz landed on his feet.

"Thanks for the save, Prime," the silver robot said.

Meanwhile, Carly ran through the building, holding the AllSpark for dear life. _I have to do this, _she told herself, her breath heavy. _I can't let them down...Protect them, Bee. _The brunette ran up the stairs, and reached the roof. Suddenly, a roaring sound hollered through the air, and Starscream rose to eye level with the teenager. "For me?" he mockingly said, his scraggy voice laced with prideful happiness. "You shouldn't have." Reaching his clawed hands towards the cube, the Decepticon felt his spark flare.

"No way," Carly replied, running for the edge of the hotel. Starscream intently followed, growing aggravated. Suddenly, Carly turned around, and lit the flare with the Decepticon's eye, causing him to fall back.

"Worthless piece of flesh!" the cowardly jet-machine screeched, clenching his damaged optic sensor. A helicopter flew towards the building, seeing the signal.

"Package detected," one of the pilots declared. "Move in for emergency pickup." Several copters dropped down towards Carly.

"Hey!" the brunette yelled, waving the flare back and forth. "Over heeere!"

"Hostile approaching friendly," an African American pilot declared. "Engaging." The expert marksman released two low-impact missiles at Starscream, causing him to lose his bearings and fall to the ground. A second helicopter lowered just above Carly, and a young man with a short haircut and several cuts on his face held his arms out to receive the AllSpark.

Carly outstretched her hands, and let the soldier take the cube. "Watch it!" she suddenly yelled. However, the teenager was too late; a pitch black helicopter swooped in sideways, slashing the army copter in half with its enhanced propellor blades. The men screamed, and the AllSpark dropped from the air. Desperately, Carly lept down from the large building, reaching for the cube. A large, yellow hand caught the girl and the cube. "Ah, there you are," Ratchet said. "Thank you..." Carly nodded, then looked up to see the Deception helicopter circle around.

"Watch out!" the girl yelled. Ratchet dropped from the side of the building, and shot a smoke bomb from his gun. The enemy was thrown off course, and crashed into a nearby hotel.

"Operation failed," Russo said under his heavy breath. "Those robots are our only hope now. Ah!"

"Try not to move," a female soldier instructed.

Sam and Freddie drove Bumblebee into the center of the town, coming within Megatron's range. "Crap!" the blond yelled, shifting into drive. Bumblebee shot a round of plasma bullets into the Decepticon's back as he and Optimus attacked one another. "Bail," the yellow robot told his friends, using the voice of an old movie convict.

"No one gets left behind," Sam replied, her eyes gazing into Bumblebee's.

"Right," Freddie added, his voice brave. "We're a team."

Megatron's body squealed as he turned to the crippled Autobot. Jazz and Ironhide tackled the gray machine. "Prime!" the black robot yelled. "Help Carly...She has the AllSpark."

Reluctantly, Optimus soared away from his foe, and approached Carly and Ratchet. Blackout recovered from his crash, and jumped down at the three. Ratchet shot the Decepticon's facial region, but was knocked down by the evil machine's falling body. "Carly!" Optimus called, sheltering the human from Blackout's claws. The helicopter roared, and found round after round of hot lead tear into him.

"Come on!" Lennox yelled. "Get some!" The young man continued to fire at the Decepticon, though it seemed useless. Blackout walked forward, but felt a throbbing in its leg from the soldier's fire, and collapsed on the ground. A final bullet shattered the monster's optic. "Yeah!" Lennox yelled, running back. Other soldiers noticed the act of bravery, or insanity. Suddenly, Starscream tore through the air, missed Optimus, and grabbed Jazz at random.

The young Autobot began slashing the Decepticon across its chest. "You wanna piece of me?" Jazz screamed. "You wanna piece?"

With a vicious scream, Starscream tore his smaller opponent in half at the waste. "I much prefer two," he said before dropping the pieces to the ground. Bluestreak disconnected, and fused with Ironhide.

"Carly," Optimus said, opening his arms around the girl. "You risked your life to protect the AllSpark."

"...No sacrifice..." Carly replied. "No victory."

Megatron thew off his attackers, and ran at Optimus, knocking him on his chest and shattering the asphalt. "Give me the cube, insect!" the Deception commanded. "And you may live to be my pet."

"I'm never giving you this AllSpark," Carly called back. Ratchet threw Blackout off, and struggled to his feet.

"Leave her alone!" Optimus hollered, rising to his feet and chopping off part of Megatron's left arm. The Autobot smashed into the Decepticon. "Carly, run!"

Carly clenched the cube, and ran towards Ironhide and Arcee. The pink motorcycle-robot transformed, and drove towards the brunette. "Carly, get on," she said. Carly sat on the Autobot, and let her drive off.

"Carly!" Freddie yelled, waving his friend over. Arcee drove over to Bumblebee, letting the girl off.

"What happened?" Sam asked.

"The drop-off fell through," Carly answered. "Thanks for protecting them, Bee." The yellow Autobot nodded at the girl he swore to protect. "We have to find the Ark."

The blue and red Autobot was thrown onto the ground by his brother, moaning in pain. Crawling forward, Optimus looked at his allies. "Carly... you must push the cube in my chest," he said, his voice grave and desperate. "It can not fall into Megatron's hands...I will sacrifice myself to destroy it."

"Optimus, no," Carly begged, feeling her throat start to ache.

"It's the only way," Prime replied, his voice saddened. Megatron laughed with malicious fury, and threw his brother away.

"Give it here, child," the gray Deception said, his voice laced with shear pleasure.

"Carly," Optimus called, throwing his fist into the ground. "Put the cube in my chest, now!" Carly looked at Megatron, then Optimus, then made her decision. "Carly..."

"Carly, no!" Sam called, watching Carly put the cube up to Megatron's chest. A violent flow of pure, raw Energon flowed into Megatron's chest, filling his spark to the point of agony.

Screaming in pain, Megatron grabbed his chest, then glared down at Carly, trying to slash at her. However, the pain was too great, and he looked at the air, electrical currents coursing through his voice. With one sudden flash of energy flashing through him, Megatron fell flat on the ground.

As the final shine of life flashed over Megatron's eyes, Optimus walked over to him with a grave nature to him. "You left me no choice, brother," he said, his majestic voice grave and hanging on every sorrowful word. Megatron's eyes faded.

Lowering himself on one knee, Optimus picked up what would be the remains of the AllSpark. That cube meant everything to Cybertron and every surviving member of the species. It had to be done, though; it could not fall into the hands of darkness. "Carly...I owe you my life," Prime said.

Ironhide and Arcee walked over, holding what remained of their fallen ally, their heads down in sorrow. "Prime," Ironhide said, his voice grave. "... We couldn't save him."

"Jazz," Optimus moaned, taking his young friend. Looking over the horrific scene before him; the destroyed AllSpark, the piles of dead Decepticons (including his own misguided brother), the crippled ally, and all the lost lives (especially Jazz, who had so many hopes and fascinations for the world before him). "We lost a great comrade today," Optimus said to his allies. "...But gained new ones. Thank you...all of you. You honor us with your bravery."

Suddenly, the sky bled over with darkness. Purple energy engulfed the entire area. It was as if the atmosphere was torn open and gored to reveal its stars and cosmic gases. Optimus gazed up at the horrific sight. Electrical blasts tore through buildings and the road. A gigantic, mechanical nightmare of a mouth approached Earth. Its body was endless; as large as a planet, lined with spikes and filled with Energon fluids and teeth. "**I am the consumer of worlds...Earth will be given to me to gorge on...despite your attempts to stop me."**

Optimus Prime rose his head towards the threat. "...Not as long as I function," Prime declared, his voice stronger and more powerful than ever before. "By the power of my spark...leave this world!" A blast of pure, endless light erupted from Optimus' spark, assaulting the planet. With a scream of agony, the beast soon faded, returning to sky to its normal, beautiful dusk stage. It was as if nothing had ever happened.

The nightmare was over. Smiling, Sam and Freddie looked up at Bumblebee, then at Carly, the returning Spencer, and Optimus. The sound of focusing frequencies echoed through the air. "P-Permission to speak, sir," Bumblebee said, not in a borrowed voice, but in his true, mature, heroic voice.

"Permission granted, old friend," Optimus warmly answered, looking at his young ally under the orange and crimson lights of the sunset.

"...I wish to stay with the humans," he said, remembering everything Carly, Sam, Spencer, and Freddie had sacrificed, how they risked their lives to save him, and their endless tendency to care and believe.

"If that is her choice," Prime replied, looking to Carly for an answer. The orange sky shined behind Optimus, inspiring anyone who saw him. Lennox helped Russo over to the ground on his shoulder.

"...Yes," Carly answered, accepting a new future, and new friends. Sam, Freddie, and Spencer smiled at the girl's choice. The group joined in a large group hug. Leader-1, Firestar, Bluestreak, and Laserbeak joined in as well. Ironhide gently put his arm around Arcee. Ratchet and Jetfire stood beside each other and around Optimus. Bumblebee smiled on the inside; knowing he had a new life, new friends.

_With the AllSpark gone, we can no longer return life to our planet...But fate has yielded its reward; a new world to call...Home._

Captain Lennox gently knocked on the door, watched as Alan's wife opened it, taking in that look of terror she had on her face, then gave her the note; the last reminder of Alan and his bravery. "I'm sorry, ma'am," he said, hoping the sunset would drawn him out.

_We live among earth's people now...Known only to our allies...Hiding in plain sight..._

The Autobots drove in different directions under the guise of their vehicle modes. Carly, Sam, and Freddie rested on Bumblebee's hood, watching the sun set over the horizon of illuminated buildings and hills.

_But watching over them in secret...Waiting...Protecting. I have witness their capacity for courage and valor...And though we are worlds apart...Like us, there's more to them than meets the eye._

Standing majestically on the cliff, overlooking the land he and his friends vowed to protect, even as the colors of dusk engulfed it, Optimus put his hands on his hips in a heroic stance, and looked up at the stars. _I am Optimus Prime...and I send this message to any surviving Autobots taking refuge among the stars...We are here. We are waiting._

Among the endless void of space, resting on the meteors and debris, several Autobots received Prime's message, and felt hope within themselves once again. Even in the coldness of the cosmos, they felt warm.

Carly pressed her lips against Freddie's that night. "...Thanks for staying strong," she said, knowing they had a future together.

"No...Thank _you_," Freddie replied, knowing what Carly had been through. Sam watched the two, letting a smile form on her face as she and Bumblebee saw a happy ending for the two.

_Epilogue and Aftermath_

Like the coward he truly was, Starscream left earth once he realized the Decepticons would fall. Trailing through geospace, the jet soon reached the stars. "Megatron has failed us all." _All are dead... All are dead._ Carving the mournful words into the wall of their old base, Starscream hollered at an empty world. "All are **dead!**" The machine's cry echoed on forever, as did his rage and pain.

"...I hear you specialize in cloning operations," said a scraggly voice. The Decepticon was clad in a torn brown robe.

"I'm sure you've heard a lot of things," a sneaky-looking machine replied, not paying much attention. A claw grabbed the extortionist, and a cloak dropped to the floor; "Make me an army!" Starscream commanded, his fury consuming him.

Exiting the pod, the Decepticon looked at the protoforms as they molded into his image. Pressing his claw to the glass, Starscream watched as more of his kind were born. "Soon, my soldiers...soon," he promised.

Standing with his clones and the rag-tag army he'd scrounged together, Starscream held his line on the planet that would soon be his. However, Cosmos, Cliffjumper, and The B.U.R.N. were too powerful. Watching his men die in flames, Starscream let out a gasp of pain. "My soldiers!" he cried, devastated. "...My brothers..." Many moaned and watched their bodies tear into pieces. "My army!...My fault..." Decepticons were dying by the second, just as before. "All survivors...retreat!" Starscream, several clones, and a former mercenary fled the planet in shame.

"I beg your forgiveness," said a defeated, shamed Starscream, bent down on one knee and staring at the floor like a dog. "...And offer you an army." Bowing in complete defeat, the Decepticon could hear The Fallen's satisfied snarl, and what may have been laughter.

Stars fell. Stars fell from the sky, and landed in the very place Prime said they'd be. Lennox and his men were waiting to welcome the new army to Earth. The N.E.S.T. would soon be a reality. The Autobots would live on, as would the Mini-Cons.

_Cast_

_Miranda Cosgrove Carly Shay_

_Jennette McCurdy Sam Puckett_

_Nathan Kress Freddie Benson_

_Jerry Trainor Spencer Shay_

_Josh Duhamel Ronald Lennox_

_With the Voices of..._

_Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime_

_Mark Ryan as Bumblebee_

_Jess Harnell as Ironhide_

_Robert Foxworth as Ratchet_

_Grey DeLisle as Arcee_

_Jennette McCurdy as Firestar_

_Hugo Weaving as Megatron_

_Charlie Adler as Starscream_

_Frank Welker as RatBat and additional Decepticons_

_and Jeremy Irons as Unicron_

**Coming Soon**...

iTransformers II: Revenge of the Fallen


End file.
